March 25, 2021

          Ryan Travis Christian’s surreal personal narratives are fueled by the absurdity of life in his small, suburban-Chicago hometown. The untidy lifestyles of contemporary humanity are all hanging out, including heavy petting, drugs and alcohol, beaten-up cars, fireworks and death. Christian’s idiosyncratic vision — influenced by vintage political cartoons and hand-drawn animation­ — has recently expanded to include commentary on current crises in the nation and world at large. Tackling hot political issues such as immigration, depression and the American dream, Christian’s historical precedents become a mirror reflecting many common concerns of the present, warts and all. His small daily drawings touch upon a vast array of topics — the economy, violence, the environment, gender, class, hope, doubt, and the afterlife — as they muse on the technological and material obsolescence of his cartoon and animation influences; Christian doubles down on the paradoxical relationship between childish cartoons and ominous messages.

​