Tan Kuan Aw

Watercolour of a small motorboat moored in a bay, pointed toward a bright horizon.
Into the Light

Tan Kuan Aw was an artist and advocate from Penang, Malaysia. Born in 1952, he passed away in January 2025.

For two years Kuan Aw's watercolours were regularly featured on the Debrief, offering artistic insights on our inner lives and the subjects in the news.

His art is full of empathy, activism, and wisdom. In the pieces below you can see everything from the line through our hearts to how we grow together, and the plum blossoms after a cold winter.

Kuan Aw's boldness and creativity as an artist has set the tone for what the Debrief project aims to achieve. Art is an essential part of making new narratives for disabled people, how we see ourselves, and how society sees us.

This page brings together the images Kuan Aw published on the Debrief.

To see Kuan Aw at work, see this video of him painting a rabbit for Chinese New Year in 2022. (Alternate text in the video description).

For more about Kuan Aw:

Illustrations published on the Debrief

Self-portrait: “I need to breathe”

Illustration of an almost-apocalyptic scene. A man with a ventilation tube sits in front of a factory, whose chimneys spew pollution to fill the upper image. To their left are drooping stick figures around a tree, with an outline of a wheelchair user being held by another on the end of a rope. The scene and background are shades of brown, whereas the man has an orange shirt, and seated on something light-blue. The man has Chinese features, crosses his arms defensively, and wears glasses with dark hair. Signed Tan Kuan Aw 2021.

In Where disability and climate meet, April 2023.

Love, Disability and War

Two glowing wheelchair users embracing, kissing, bright yellow with halos around their forms going into a dark purple background. Under them, smaller, is a tank looming over a city.

In On The War in Ukraine, March 2022.

Disabled Children in War

A water-colour painting: purple-red sky, black-and-white destroyed building, two children in the foreground. One, in green, sits in a wheelchair while the other, walking behind, pushes. They move in the devastation around them.

In On The War in Ukraine, March 2022.

War

Vertical watercolour image. Top quarter sees black tanks and planes move through a purple cityscape and blue sky. Bottom three-quarters are underground, splayed yellow figures, one a pregnant woman crying, a child, a wheelchair user, a crutch, dark glasses.

In On The War in Ukraine, March 2022.

Many disabled people have no place to hide

Watercolour image shows a black outline of an attack helicopter facing a small outline of a wheelchair user with their hands up. The wheelchair user is on an elevated building, with the backgrounds to the buildings drenched in red.

In On The War in Ukraine, March 2022.

Portrait of Peter

A watercolour portrait of Peter, a white man with dark curly hair, glasses, a beard, and a dark blue jumper. Signed Tan Kuan Aw, 2021

On the Debrief homepage from 2022 to today.

Next Frontier for activism

Artistic representation, a watercolour showing a judge sentencing a robot with its hands up in surrender. The robot is made of green boxes, in the style of a desktop interface, with purple clawed arms, hands, antenna and wheeled base. The judge, on a big chair and behind a lectern, holds his mallet and scowls. The judge has brown skin, white wig and is wearing a black suit. Signed Tan Kuan Aw, 27 Mar 2022.

In New Frontiers for Activism in AI and Tech, April 2022.

Our dataset doesn't have people like you

An artistic representation, in watercolour, of a robot gesturing negatively towards a woman in disability. The robot has a thought bubble of an expressionless and black-and-white man with a tie and trousers. The robot, in orange, has AI on its chest, is made of segmented pieces and has purple hands and helmet. The woman is white, has grey hair, lipstick, a red and green chair and yellow dress. The background is blue, and it is signed in red, Tan Kuan Aw, 26 Mar 2022.

In New Frontiers for Activism in AI and Tech, April 2022.

Steps to safety

A watercolour image of a flood scene: on land, a house with steps, the woman in the water holding a wheelchair.

In Responses to climate change leaving disabled people behind, April 2022.

Facing inflation

Watercolour illustration of a large dragon looming over a small person wearing dark glasses and holding a cane. The dragon is shades of green with wings outstretched, tail curved and glowering down. The person faces towards the dragon, looming backwards in trepidation, with a red top, blue trousers and flashes of red on the cane. Signed Tan Kuan Aw, 4th July 2022.

In Feeling pride, feeling poorly, feeling the prices, August 2022.

Heatwave

A watercolour illustration of a young man sitting in a wheelchair under the sun. The sun is a large red ball dominating the top half, and red rays stretch outwards against a hot orange background. The young man has light brown skin, black hair, a small smile, and a blue jumper. On his left is a fan pointing towards him, on his right a wilting flower, and above a green umbrella. Signed Tan Kuan Aw, 19th July 2022

In Disability in the Heat, July 2022.

A long way to inclusion

Illustration of a stick figure inside a maze. A dotted line traces the path from the figure to the outside, where a bus waits

In Shallow, siloed and tokenistic: critiques of inclusion, October 2022.

Heavy skies over the desert

Illustration of desert, with a thin river leading to a narrow horizon of dark sea and above that foreboding dark red clouds.

In Can COP27 contribute to disability-inclusive climate justice?, November 2022.

Freedom to fly

Watercolour illustration of a dark building with columns and outline of birds flying away from it, upwards into a blue sky.

In Escaping institutions, and their shadows, December 2022.

Jingle all the way

Illustration of Santa, sitting in a wheelchair, holding a sack marked "Disability Debrief", full of emails to deliver.

In How we're making disability media, and how you can help, December 2022.

The colder the winter, the more the plum blossoms

Dark lines illustrate the outline of a rabbit and a tree growing on its back. The rabbit's eye and tree blossoms pink-red.

In The progress we made is at risk, January 2023.

The line through our hearts

A painting of quadrants. The central quadrant is two figures contorted under a heart. A jagged line goes across the entire painting from the left, through an upraised hand, across the heart, and then under a medicine bottle and through a skull. At the top, a thin line, from left across two thirds, shows a chain. It is met by a medicine bottle with a dollar sign. To the right of that is the skull with a padlock on top. Underneath the central figures is a thin stethoscope. The bottom right quadrant is made of two rows, above an eye and an echo of the jagged line and below a figure in a wheelchair and another in a cage. Signed in bottom left Tan Kuan Aw, 23

In Healthcare has to be healed, January 2023.

Isolation

Black and white painting of a downcast face, hands on head. Flanked by 2 figures, one an outline, the other sitting, crying.

In Don't you have mercy on yourself?, February 2023.

Growing together

Painting of blurred colours, from dark blue down into green, yellow, orange and green again. Overlaid with outlines of petals

In A disability lens on world news, February 2023.

Goodbye Judy

A line drawing portrait of Judy's face in outline. Short, full hair, glasses, dark eyes holding us, and a peaceful smile.

In Our movement is in mourning, March 2023.

Where is justice?

Illustration of a woman in front of a line of riot police. She gestures with one arm and and the other holds a blank sign.

In Disabled People in Peru's Political Protests, March 2023.

Facing life. In memory of Anthony Thanasayan

An illustration of a man in a wheelchair alongside a dog. The man is broad shouldered and wears glasses. Both look gentle.

In Not willing to be neutral, March 2023.

Intertwined

An abstract illustration of figures entangled, dancing. Outlines of yellow figures stand in centre, arms locked together. There is a group huddled on the left and on the right a figure in a blue dress holding a guitar. Behind them is greenery, a large block of flats, and a rainbow. Flowers are at their feet.

In How do we look after each other?, April 2023.

When elephants fight...

An illustration of city buildings with smoke towering above. The buildings are in yellows, purples and blues, and fire is visible in the background. In the foreground a small bus heads into the desert.

In “We are not alone”: Disabled people in Sudan's conflict, May 2023.

Taming the tiger

An illustration of a tiger in front of a monk. The tiger looms larger but the seated monk calmly holds a hand up. Black lines outline the figures and fill a portentous background. The figures are lightly filled in orange and the monk is bald. Signed Tan Kuan Aw 2023.

In Taming the tiger, May 2023.

Halfway Inclusion

An illustration of a ramp that becomes a series of steps. Surrounded by pleasant greenery. Signed Tan Kuan Aw 2023.

In Do we practice what we preach?, May 2023.

Out of the ruins

A monochrome grey illustration of Rana Plaza ruins: building rubble against a background of buildings.

In My prayer to failure, June 2023.

Where to draw the line?

A grid of squares, grouped into different colours. A figure stands in front of them, arms on waist, as if making a decision.

In How many disabled people are there?, July 2023.

Our Care for Each Other

Painting of amorphous purple bodies intertwined, holding each other. Background of urban buildings, dark green.

In Considered a backup, July 2023.

Connections

Watercolour of stick figures of different colours, each interlinked with its neighbours.

In The weight of the issue, October 2023.

Recovery

Sketch outlining a figure lying down under a tree, a teapot on a fire at their feet. Signed Tan Kuan Aw, 4th October 2023.

KA had a mini-stroke in August 2023. This image shows his recovery, “better each day”, published in Call me in the morning, October 2023.

Santa and his wheelsleigh

A simple watercolour illustration of Santa on wheels, and carrying a big bag of gifts.

In A disabled farewell to 2023, December 2023.

Sana'a

Watercolour silhouette of Sana'a, with domes flanked by minarets and buildings, coloured in earthy yellow-brown.

In Successes and setbacks, January 2024.

Julia Watts Belser

A watercolour portrait of Julia, a white woman with black hair, glasses, and a broad smile that reaches her eyes.

In I'd fight like hell for you, February 2024.

Here be dragons

A line illustration of a dragon lying calmly with a smiling monk sipping tea from a tea-pot. Signed Tan Kuan Aw, 7 Jan 2024.

A series welcoming the year in the dragon. See Here be dragons for the full collection, February 2024.

Dancing Flowers

Abstract illustration of colourful blooming flowers. Their stems are wiggly, almost like dancing figures.

In What I've learned in conversation, February 2024.

Don't shut the door behind you

Watercolour illustration of a wooden gate, closed. Each door of the gate has the shape of an x on it, and there is a patch of green grass in front. Signed Tan Kuan Aw, Mar 2024.

In Don’t shut the door behind you, March 2024.

Schisms in the Church

Line outline drawing of a large church building with an imposing facade. Signed Tan Kuan Aw 2024.

In Schisms in the Church, April 2024.

Happy 100th

KA's last illustration on the Debrief was by chance, but fittingly, an anniversary edition of the 100th edition, in April 2024.

Watercolour illustration of a turquoise-topped cake with an @ sign and a large red 100 placed on top like a candle. Signed Tan Kuan Aw.

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