ANOK YAI

She’s one of the most IN-DEMAND FACES in FASHION. But for the South Sudanese American model, BEAUTY comes from a DEEPER, much more PERSONAL place.

Story by KAITLYN GREENIDGE

I love paintings when it feels like you’re intruding,” says Anok Yai. We are standing in front of Kerry James Marshall’s Untitled (Studio), which hangs in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. The painting is a glimpse into an artist’s workspace, with a model seated, her head in the hands of an artist’s assistant who is staring at the viewer. It is as if you’ve disturbed something—or maybe the viewer is the artist, about to tackle the half-completed canvas that sits to the left of the frame. “I fucking love this,” Yai says and immediately sits on a bench in front of the painting. It makes sense she’d be drawn to it. In addition to being that rare cultural phenomenon—a bona fide supermodel—Yai is also an artist. She taught herself oil painting…

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Harper's Bazaar (Digital) - 1 Issue, May 2024

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