This hat is my 3D rendition of a painting found in a 14th century illuminated French bible depicting King Nebuchadnezzar grazing with an ox as punishment from God for thinking himself supreme (see last slide). The scene carries a different meaning in the context of a post-Darwin world, rendered by an animal rights activist rather than a medieval era monk.

I borrowed the title, "When They Stoop, They Stoop with the Like Wing", from “Henry V” by William Shakespeare. In the play, it refers to the idea that the king is just a man, no different than any other. My piece expands its context to remind the viewers that humans are animals, not supreme beings. Here is an excerpt of the play if you're curious:

"The king is but a man, as I am;
the violet smells to him as it doth to me;
the element shows to him as it doth to me;
all his senses have but human conditions;
his ceremonies laid by, in his nakedness he appears but a man;
and though his affections are higher mounted than ours, yet, when they stoop, they stoop with the like wing."

It is made from needle felted fiber, dye, clay, enamels, and metallic thread