I often get told how lovely my skin is, by photographers and painters. It looks lush and warm in the studio, in natural light, in nature, in creating distinct tones in black and white. Most fine-art models are white. Following market logic, if I promote myself as the dark-skinned exotic model, I could generate more attention, get more shoots. Photos of Southeast Asian beaches and mountains. Hashtags I’ve never used like #exotic and #tan, #asianmodel and #asiangirl.

In mid-May, I received a Facebook invite to ‘Vessels to a Story’, an exhibition put on by RISE Refugees, the only organisation in Australia founded and run by refugees, asylum seekers and ex-detainees. ‘This exhibition is not a celebration of “multiculturalism”,’ the opening sentence read, ‘nor is it a celebration of Melbourne as a “melting pot” of cultures.’