Annah, Infinite

In Annah, Infinite, the dominant narratives surrounding Paul Gauguin’s famous painting Annah la Javanaise (1893-94) are turned upside down.

In questioning the ‘facts’ surrounding Annah’s life, Annah, Infinite draws attention to how historical narratives, shaped by colonial powers, have distorted Annah’s story. It critiques the systems of ablenormativity, racism, and sexism embedded in art institutions, and the way these structures mask the violent colonial legacies still haunting museum walls.

The work doesn’t just deconstruct mythologies; it brings to light the material realities of Annah’s portrait as both a commodity in the global market and a stark contradiction of the tropes surrounding disabled Southeast Asian girls in the so-called ‘developing world.’ It is an exploration of colonial ableism and a profound look at the long histories of resistance led by disabled people.

Interspersed with the author’s own poetry, fiction, and visual art on the painting’s subject, this is a book of emotional heft. It asks us all to acknowledge the possibility of pain in every single portrait, as well as the possibility of escape.