ABSTRACT
The ubiquitous rubber band has many uses and Carson uses them in her constructed metaphors. Rubber bands have an intrinsic attraction for people. They can temporarily solve the most outlandish problems and they are fun. As adults, it will do to get people's hair into a ponytail, attach cling film that does not cling to a bowl, secure rolled up images and so much more. A bag of rubber bands, thoughtfully stored in a supposedly easy-to-remember spot in some drawer, suddenly becomes utterly elusive when attempting to recall exactly in which drawer that bag actually ended up. Carson's seemingly simplistic images may appear to state the obvious, the difference between relaxation and stress. Another way to think about Carson's work is as the misshapen circle and its subsequent stretch into the parallel lines. Neither serves a purpose as such but both intrinsically describe the difference between tension and no tension.
