Hybridity in Art

            Sara Ludy is and American Visual Artist who is known for working in mediums such as animation, video, sculpture, and audio-visual performance. Her work typically contains a confluence of physical and virtual, and she gets her inspiration from both her subconscious and otherworldly scenes she sees. 

            Ludy grew up in Bluemont, Virginia, and was mainly exposed to traditional forms of art, when she was introduced to digital mediums, she switched to those immediately. She worked as a video editor and an interior designer for two years until she quit to focus on her art.

            In the art world, Ludy is known as a hybrid artist as she typically incorporates various art forms into her works. For example, her works “Cloud Relief Parts 1 and 2” combine digital animation with a representation of atmospheric clouds. However, the pieces’ hybridity gives them deeper meaning as representations of the digital cloud. 

Sara Ludy, "Cloud Relief 2 and 1," bitforms gallery, 2016 from bitforms gallery on Vimeo.

            Pieces such as these are said to be created with digital dust, which she finds can represent presences beautifully. That it, digital arts give her the opportunity to create objects which explore the nature of immateriality without having to make actual physical forms. Ludy has a wide array of similar works that take components of our natural environment and then recreate them digitally. However, she does not restrict herself to environmental pieces. Her work is ever evolving, and as such she has works such as “Rooms” that explore physical domestic spaces and then turn them into abstract representations of those dimensions.

Sara Ludy, "Rooms," 2012 from bitforms gallery on Vimeo.

             As can be seen, her work demolishes the viewer’s traditional expectations of space and instead introduce abstract illusions in the form of animation; Ludy creates hybridity through the combination of those illusions and animation, and has many more projects exploring architecture and abstract forms of space such as “Dream House”. The aforementioned project in particular is experience by a dream Ludy had, and has become quite a big project. She has created a 3D dream space out replete with interesting dimensions and intricate details interwoven with outstanding architecture. Sara Ludy has been able to explore various forms of art and weave deeper meaning into each piece. She explores her own subconscious, paradise, the environment, abstract ideas and many other things. She has not restricted herself in any way, shape or form; the artist has let hybridity create astounding pieces, and she continues to explore new mediums and concepts.

"Sea Basement"

         I have found that hybridity is more than simply the incorporation of multiple art forms: often times, it is the combination of various art forms, meanings, and messages. The different art forms serve to accentuate these messages and provide further explanations of their depth. Pieces that may seem like abstract blobs on a screen or a piece of paper, can actually represent the many intricate life forms that compose our universe.  Hybridity, in essence, serves to make a work more complex, give it life, new meaning. It serves to show us the various interpretations of single pieces or art, which perfectly fits with the socio-political climate of our current time period.

            Contemporary artists most often use hybridity to explore different aspects of a single topic. In today’s digital world, they have found that they can express ideas previously barred from anything but the imagination quite easily. Their ideas contain multiple layers, and can explore topics of a wide range. While some choose to explore metaphysical and subconscious ideas, some may choose to explore avenues concerning fantasy and adventure. Hybridity truly has opened up a world of possibilities that artists can choose to interpret how they wish.

            I find that I may be able to introduce hybridity into my work in multiple ways. I’ve always been interested in the digital dust that Sara Ludy talks about, and while it would be quite a hassle to work with, such simulations would present me with interesting opportunities, especially as I wish to explore non-physical concepts such as anger. I am rather interested in implementing mirror images, or symmetry into my work. Many post-modern artists who work with hybridity seem to explore seemingly psychedelic portraits; however, they present themselves to me as Rorschach images, and I would like to see how I could incorporate psychological elements into 3D work. For example, a mirror set near a multi-resolution sphere that is modified this way and that could present itself in interesting ways to different people, which is something I would like to see.  

            In my investigation, I came across Sara Ludy’s exploration of dreams, or her subconscious. While I do not often have dreams, I do have a rather vivid imagination, and, as mentioned in my previous post about themes in art, have benefited from imagining physical manifestations of my emotions. I have already expressed interest in creating animations pertaining to those particular manifestations, but after this investigation, I find that I would like the opportunity to dive further into my subconscious. I also found myself entranced by Ludy’s exploration of space and illusions, I would like the opportunity to explore something on that path. If I could somehow incorporate illusions into my work, they would appear even more corporeal and serve as a reminder that while I may be presenting ‘physical’ manifestations of emotions, they are purely constructs of the mind, and thus cannot always be confined to such boundaries.


https://vimeo.com/151300594
https://vimeo.com/110605922
https://www.saraludy.com/sea-basement-2015
https://www.saraludy.com/
http://www.digiart21.org/art/cloud-relief-1-cloud-relief-2
http://www.dazeddigital.com/artsandculture/article/15085/1/hybridity-in-new-art
https://intelligentsiagallery.com/Interview-with-Sara-Ludy