Raised in an artistic family that frequented the Glenbow Museum, Ada Peddlesden has long been infatuated with days gone by, though her anachronistic style truly blossomed during her years as a student at the Alberta College of Art + Design. “I’ve always been drawn to looks of the past,” she says, with inspirations that range from the Old Hollywood glamour of Louise Brooks to the French New Wave cool of Anna Karina. (Peddlesden even rocked the iconic Brooks bob for a number of years but eventually grew it out as she was starting to find it “pretty drastic.”)
Five years ago, Peddlesden’s interests in art and heritage converged when she landed a staff position in the Glenbow’s department of access collections and exhibitions, a workplace that’s conducive to her personal style. “It’s pretty free there; I think because we’re all artists, it’s hard to have a strict dress code,” she says. And while she remains infatuated with the past, her arm tattoos reveal she’s a woman of her own era, as well. “They’re pretty traditional-looking,” she says. “But yes, I do love tattoos. I want to get some more.”
