Radiant, Radiant, Beastly Beasts
I’m sure you’ve seen them. Whether in the library, the third-floor balcony of EPAC, or the hard-to- miss radiance of the one feverishly bulging out the Academy Building, these Radiant Beasts by Claire Ashley are everywhere you look, intoxicating and exploding with colorful possibilities.
However, there’s more to say about these creatures than to just admire their
break the boundaries of a traditionally confined canvas, just like the artist herself: Claire Ashley, who breaks the boundaries of painting and sculpture. As radiant as they are beastly, these colorful inflatables are also possibly one of the most relevant and significant art displays we’ve had on campus; from the feminist battle on abortion to promoting diverse opinions across campus.
Thought-provoking in every way, these beasts shed light on one of women’s most pressing issues: abortion.
The displays are meant to “take up space” and have “their presence felt,” as feminist artist Claire Ashley states on her website. Ashley also explains how these beasts are meant to “vibrate with raunchy, energetic life — being lumpy, imperfect, and real,” just like the world around us.
In a world where women’s rights are being threatened — not to sound too political here — Ashley creates these beasts as “taking up arms with pride, confidence, vigor, and beautiful attitude, to protect and support a woman’s right to choose.” In a post-Roe world, protecting and advocating for women in the United States is one of the most defining issues of our generation. So, why not express this war through one of the most powerful weapons known to man, but through art?
While squishy and playful, these creatures are simultaneously loud and in your face, as they should be when women’s rights are at stake — an issue just as alarming as these beasts.
Whether you love them, hate them, or are completely impassive towards these colorful inflatables meant to allegorize the fight for women’s rights, art is one of the most important things we could have on campus, especially as we begin to make our way through the fall term.
These Radiant Beasts by Claire Ashley serve as a reminder to students across campus that there’s more to life beyond Exeter — more than the books and the grades and the standardized tests, but meaning and color and radiance. They also remind us of how beauty can be interpreted in multiple ways. Having these beasts on campus only promotes diversity of thought and without diversity of thought, what is a place like Exeter but meaningless? Who doesn’t appreciate a pop of color in times of stress, even if it is a big radiant beast?
Though not for everyone, the beasts are beautiful in their own way and carry a powerful meaning. Beastly, airy, and radiant, they remind us of something greater lying outside of these protective brick barriers.
By ALLISON KELLY ‘25
