Photography

Friday 1 May 2026

The grid: Annie Collinge’s childhood curios

The American’s photographer’s candid images celebrate the wonders and absurdities of a child’s imagination

Photographic book by artist Annie Collinge

Photographic book by artist Annie Collinge

Beloved for whimsical images that make everyday objects appear otherworldly, the British-American photographer Annie Collinge’s new series turns the lens to her own child. Named for an existential Post-it note she once found at her son’s bedside, Ask Alexa When are we all gonna die tomorrow :-) explores the absurd detritus of childhood, using flash photography to render everything from bubble baths to toy pianos as disconcertingly vivid and fantastical.

Collinge avoids sentimental tropes, saying: “I wanted to resist [cliche] and do something more real, more like the way I take photographs of adults and of accumulation, and the strange comfort of asking a device in the corner of the room a question it cannot possibly answer.”

Ask Alexa When are we all gonna die tomorrow :-) is published by Jane & Jeremy on 5 May (£60).

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