Alexandra Ellena

Cryptids are recognized by all walks of life, each with their own story behind them. These animal-like creatures carry stories to teach lessons or give warnings in different cultures.

Normally recognized as supernatural or mythical creatures, their stories drew me to explore them as most people have heard of them or know about them. Being pulled to the odd or unusual myself, I find it intriguing that all cultures have their own versions of these cryptids. During my study, I found cryptids not only vary around the world but there are new cryptids being discovered today in the world of technology.

Choosing to work in 2D and 3D alludes to the question of their existence. 2D represented by copper and dry point etching gives the viewer a feeling of comfort in the sense they’re only images. Whereas the 3D sculptures place these entities within our world and space making the viewer think more about their existence. I chose to use plate manipulation to create a mysterious feel to the images. However, the sculptures are focused more on large dimensions and texture to create a lifelike feel of what it would be like to be face-to-face with one of these entities. Large scale creates a more in-your-face approach to introduce these beasts to our world, while the texture gives it a likeness to creatures we cohabitate with on a daily basis. All of these components challenge the viewer to question the existence of these legends as well as their own comfort with them.