Summary Of In The Ravenous Eye By Andrea Carlson

Walking into the exhibition Ravenous Eye by Andrea Carlson at the TCNJ one is greeted by a stark but aesthetically pleasing wall of seemingly abstract illustrations. Upon closer inspection, these illustrations morph into highly detailed images of bones, deserts, monsters, and animals mixed extruding quotes such as “O CURSED LUST OF GOLD” and “The European Space Agency has unveiled its most advanced satellite ever. The one point three billion pound”. Fused together, these objects allude to a cultural narrative that speaks of the wasteful and destructive ways of our society. This cultural narrative presented in the form of dazzling illustrations and paintings is what truly comprises the work of Andrea Carlson. Carlson born in 1979 is a Chicago based visual artist. Over the course of her career she has had her artwork displayed by institutions such as the National Gallery of Canada, the Weisman Art Museum, and the British Museum. Her art is made to tell stories and relate ideas through the creation of assimilated metaphors in her artwork.
In the Ravenous Eye, Carlson uses metaphors to tell the story of a consumptive society.
One metaphor, demonstrated in her painting Cannibal Ferox, is that of cannibals eating human legs which tells how we as humans are harming ourselves by overconsuming. Similar messages seem to resonate throughout the gallery. The painting “Apocalypse Domani” blends a wasteland landscape with machinery is directly associated with pop culture such as Mad Max and Fallout, two works set in the aftermath of the downfall of modern society due to essential resources being depleted. Also, the painting associates itself with the cover of the movie Apocalypse Now except Apocalypse Domani wants to reference the future whereas Apocalypse Now now wants to reference the
present. All in all, the works of art within the exhibition Ravenous Eye come together nicely to make for a very comprehensive exhibition. All of the artwork in the installation share a similar theme and even very similar imagery as there is a wasteland background that is repeated throughout almost every piece in the gallery. This setup is one of the exhibitions strength as it provides for a complete setting that allows the metaphors and narratives with each piece to work together and strengthen the messages of one another. The work in the exhibition are also strengthened by Carlsons skill as a drawer and painter as her physical masterpieces made with a tremendous attention to detail. The only real downfall of the exhibit are Carlson’s videos which seem out of place and don’t work well with the rest of the exhibit. Overall, the exhibition Ravenous Eye is a well put together installation that does an excellent presenting a social critique of the society we live in. Carlson’s masterfully made artwork comprised of barren wastelands and pop-culture imagery do an excellent job of telling of the dangers that may result from our societies wasteful ways.