Cultural Hybridity in Art

"Hybridity results when two or more cultures are incorporated to create a new cultural identity. The identities are not assimilated or altered independently, bits of identities become elements of a new identity. A third identity emerges which is not the same as the independent parts. It is common to find hybridity in the context of a colonised culture that has been destabilised. When cultures take in elements of global influence, they are doing so within the context of their local lives and creating a new hybrid."

Smith, K. (2006) The Impact of Indigenous Hybridity on the Formation of World Society. Worlds Society Focus Papers.

Hybridity has has an impact on art and design in todays world. Advances in globalisation has meant that the world we live in is constantly on the move. People can move between countries with ease as a tourist, worker and immigrant. New innovations in technology such as the television and the internet mean we can also experience these cultures as at any time as virtual travellers. This movement between cultures has influenced the work of many modern artists including Chris Ofili who's a Turner Prize winning painter. Ofili is British of African and Caribbean descent who's success has allowed him to travel to places such as Zimbabwe and Trinidad. His movement in cultures has influenced his style as he builds up layers in his work to explore personal issues and cultural identity.

Chris Ofili, Third Eye Vision, 1999

-Ruth