Carolyn Monastra (Cleveland, Ohio) bases her practice on a profound connection with the natural environment. Her projects, often rooted in documentary approaches, evolve into complex visual narratives that convey the current fragility of ecosystems under the pressure of environmental changes and crises.
In the work The Cornfield, a blindfolded female figure makes her way through the tall plants of a corn field, as the title itself indicates. With her right arm extended forward, she seems to attempt to orient herself in space, relying on a perception that goes beyond sight. The gesture suggests an alternative experience of nature: by removing the sense of vision, expectations are suspended, and other senses—touch, hearing, and smell—are activated, contributing to the construction of a mental image inevitably different from what is visible. This creates a different mode of understanding the natural world, one that is more intimate and sensory.
The viewer’s gaze is drawn to the predominance of green and the density of the foliage, which forms a sort of vegetal labyrinth in which the human figure appears completely immersed.
The work is part of the series The Dominion of Trees, conceived as a visual narrative exploring the relationship between humans and nature. The subjects in these images inhabit a suspended space, where mankind’s presence intertwines deeply with the landscape, giving rise to stories that investigate coexistence, adaptation, and interdependence. The dreamlike atmosphere—a recurring motif in the artist’s practice—fosters a sense of mystery and openness, leaving the narratives deliberately unfinished.
Monastra’s work thus functions as an invitation to enter the image and continue its story. Rather than offering a singular reading, the artist opens an interpretive space in which the viewer is invited to participate, weaving imagination with the unconscious. The result is an experience in which emotional, psychological, and visual dimensions merge, shaping a personal and possible narrative suspended between reality and fable.

Carolyn Monastra, The Cornfield, 2003, 30×38″ digital c-print.
From the series The Dominion of Trees.

01/04/26