I found myself holding back politically, avoiding race-related themes in my artwork to appear non-confrontational. Yet even when my work wasn’t overtly about race, assumptions were still made – simply because I was a Black artist painting Black bodies. This reinforced the notion that Blackness itself is often politicised. I felt constantly categorised by race, regardless of intent.

In response, I created an artwork directly confronting this experience. A Human in Bunny’s Clothing is a pop surrealist acrylic painting depicting a thin, faceless, magenta-hued humanoid bunny figure, surrounded by one-eyed white rabbits. It holds a bunny mask resembling minstrel blackface – an extended metaphor for “double consciousness.” The piece expresses how I felt the need to mask certain opinions to preserve what Robin DiAngelo describes as white fragility.

The cartoon-like style was inspired by Luke Chueh, known for blending childlike imagery with darker themes. I aimed to evoke both nostalgia and unease. At first glance, the painting appears playful, but deeper reflection reveals its complexity. The white bunnies, traditionally symbols of innocence, become unsettling with their single eyes, subverting expectations. A sponged black background adds a smoky, ambiguous atmosphere to enhance this tension.