This essay discusses the visual artwork of Greenlandic-Danish Pia Arke (1958–2007), and the ”India Cycle” by Marguerite Duras. It suggests that Duras’ and Arke’s respective works constitute global narratives, and that both approach what may be termed ”the essential trait” of contemporary global history. This essential trait is made present through the pertinent figure of a subaltern female subject, occupying a “decolonial position” at the margin of the global order. The essay presents a model through which this figure may be understood and emphasizes the figure’s importance for urgent political and theoretical problems, such as the veil and islamophobia. The essay also discusses Arke’s striking originality, which has not achieved the attention it deserves. Through calculated ambiguity, meticulous research practices and incorporation of oral history, Arke provided a visual record of the construction of the Arctic native and the role of ethnography and photography in colonial conquest.
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