Contortionist 2.0

The Contortionist 2.0 is a 2024 mural by Anyu Sun at Arlington Five in Ottawa's Centretown neighbourhood. Anyu originally created this character for House of Paint, but the piece was buffed within months. This is her second take on it. The mural shows a woman bent into an impossible shape in bright pink and green, pushing against the societal expectations that tell people how to live, how to look, and how to take up space. The colours are deliberate: Anyu noticed early on that much of Ottawa's public space runs in greys and beiges, and painting something this bright is, for her, a form of resistance. Read more about Anyu and her work in our artist spotlight.