Depictions of women of colour in art are often filtered through the white, male gaze. Through her first collection, Ananya challenges hegemonic depictions of women of colour as objects and muses, by situating them as protagonists in playful, fantastical backdrops alongside dinosaurs. In this two part collection, Ananya showcases four watercolour paintings that play with fantasy, colour and nature alongside women of colour doing carefree activities with dinosaurs.

Ananya chose to include dinosaurs in these pieces specifically to create a sense of fantasy and adventure. Since women of colour are often depicted in art as either hyper-sexualised or de-sexualised objects and exotic muses, these pieces look to facilitate a sense of adventure, where the women of colour featured in the paintings are uniquely themselves.

The second part of the collection looks more directly at the ways in which women of colour are fetishized through the white, male gaze. This part of the collection showcases three bold digital portraits of women from different backgrounds to highlight the nuanced histories of fetishes of women of colour from different racial backgrounds, and the real life violent consequences racial fetishes have for those who are fetishized.

Join Ananya at ONCA gallery for the opening of her first solo exhibition at the Launch Event on July 3rd 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm