Follow The Rabbit 

Curator: Here we have Cassidy Rae Marietta's mixed-media piece, "Follow The Rabbit," an artwork teeming with symbolic tension. Editor: My immediate reaction is that it’s unsettling, yet intriguing. The nude figure seated on the crescent moon, surrounded by…rabbits, of all things. Their strangely elongated limbs and prominent claws disrupt the classical allusion to a deity. Curator: Precisely. The composition establishes a visual hierarchy, emphasizing the figure’s poised equilibrium, balanced by the celestial bodies above and below. Note how Marietta deploys color—soft gradients against stark lines—to separate the mundane from the fantastical. Editor: From a production perspective, what draws my attention is how the use of mixed media underscores the blending of realities within the piece. You’ve got what seems like paint for the skin tones and moon, but the rabbit-figures have these harsher outlines and details… It almost feels like collage elements inserted into the picture. Curator: And consider what that does structurally! The rabbits act as liminal figures, framing and directing the viewer's gaze toward the female figure's expression: one of distant knowing. They perform an important narrative function, acting as agents of transformation, urging us to perceive beyond conventional reality. The formal construction implies allegory. Editor: Absolutely. Focusing on Marietta’s artistic process, it makes one wonder about the materiality of dreams or subconscious motivations. Was it a conscious act, embedding socio-political messaging? I find the stark contrast between her fleshy corporeality and these rather sinister animals visually unsettling. They possess, by my interpretation, monstrous hands; not natural animal features! Curator: Monstrous is perhaps harsh, though understandable. It’s a modern spin, isn’t it? Using traditional figurative compositions but warping proportions. I’m mostly held by the dialogue between geometric symbolism versus representational technique. A dichotomy—fantasy against reality. Editor: True. Considering the means and modes, though, this prompts engagement beyond sheer visual reception and leads to cultural and material interpretation, and perhaps more urgent themes. I suppose that ambiguity gives power to it. Curator: Well, whichever interpretation you choose to follow down the rabbit hole, Marietta's work certainly offers food for thought. Editor: Yes, she presents us with potent symbolism crafted through intricate, hands-on processes—forcing us to confront both our material reality and what might lurk beneath its surface.