Experimental Artistic Practices in Contemporary U.S. Culture: Identity Transformation and Global Influence

Authors

  • Devora Otuonie Artist and Floral Designer collaborating with Ode à la Rose, Birch Event, and various galleries including Les Couleurs Art Gallery and White’s Art Gallery, Miami https://orcid.org/0009-0000-1960-892X

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63931/ijchr.v7i1.120

Keywords:

audience participation, digital art, emotional engagement, installation, political and social issues, text-based art

Abstract

This article investigates experimental techniques in contemporary American art and their global impact. The research explores how contemporary American artists, particularly James Turrell, Jenny Holzer, and Bill Viola, employ experimental techniques through their aesthetic experiences, motivations, and intentions. It also examines how the international art community perceives these techniques. A phenomenological approach was employed, emphasizing subjective experience and interpretation. The findings reveal that experimental art practices in the United States are characterized by innovation and unconventional approaches, with techniques such as light and space manipulation, text-based art, and video art widely used. Additionally, bioart, interactive and participatory installations, and digital art expand the scope of experimental practices. These works reflect critical social and political issues and invite audience responses, constructing new realities through innovative materials and techniques. The study demonstrates the significant global influence of American experimental art, contributing to cross-cultural dialogue and the evolution of contemporary artistic discourse. The findings hold implications for integrating interdisciplinary, technology-oriented approaches into art education and curation, encouraging innovation and audience engagement.

Author Biography

Devora Otuonie, Artist and Floral Designer collaborating with Ode à la Rose, Birch Event, and various galleries including Les Couleurs Art Gallery and White’s Art Gallery, Miami

Devora Otuonie is an award-winning Ukrainian artist and floral designer based in the U.S. Her work explores emotional realism through portraits and combines fine art with floral design for luxury events and brand collaborations. She has exhibited in renowned galleries in Miami, served as a jury member for national competitions, and actively contributes to community-based art therapy and creative initiatives.

References

[1] Adcock, C. (2023). James Turrell: The art of light and space. University of California Press.https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1525/9780520331457/html DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.8500991

[2] Anghel, A. A., Giurea, D., Mohora, I., Hapenciuc, A.-D., Milincu, O. C., & Frigura-Iliasa, F. M. (2022). Green interactive installations as conceptual experiments towards a new meaning of smart design. Buildings, 12(1), Article 62. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12010062 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12010062

[3] Araújo, S. (2024). Politics, poetry and performance at a time of surveillance: (In)secure home(land)s in Laurie Anderson's multimedia artwork. Cahiers de littérature orale, 95-96, 177-198. https://doi.org/10.4000/12u4b DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/12u4b

[4] Astorga, J. M. (2024). Nietzsche is dead: The necessity of religion in postmodern society. Journal of Contemporary Philosophical and Anthropological Studies, 2(2). https://doi.org/10.59652/jcpas.v2i2.227 DOI: https://doi.org/10.59652/jcpas.v2i2.227

[5] Attewell, C. (2023, May 15). Jenny Holzer – Sagacious transformer of text into art. Art in Context. https://artincontext.org/jenny-holzer/

[6] Avinal, S. (2024). Clay consistency in experimental art practices: Instant dialogues with ceramic material. Journal for the Interdisciplinary Art and Education, 5(4), 219-230. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14588860

[7] Bennett, N. P. (2019). Floating in space: DisEmbodied experiences of being held tightly by the vast emptiness in Turrell's'Perfectly Clear'. PARtake: The Journal of Performance As Research, 2(2). https://doi.org/10.33011/partake.v2i2.425 DOI: https://doi.org/10.33011/partake.v2i2.425

[8] Brown, S. (2024). The performing arts combined: the triad of music, dance, and narrative. Frontiers in psychology, 15, Article 1344354. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1344354 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1344354

[9] Burello, A. (2023). Art as spirituality: The paradigmatic case of Marina Abramović. Journal for the Study of Spirituality, 13(1), 5–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/20440243.2023.2187966 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/20440243.2023.2187966

[10] Carrasco-Barranco, M. (2025). Artistic aesthetic value in participatory art. Philosophies, 10(2), 29. https://doi.org/10.3390/philosophies10020029 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/philosophies10020029

[11] Casale, S. A. (2024). Global early modern art in seven objects. Journal of Early Modern History, 28(6), 447-458. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700658-bja10093 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/15700658-bja10093

[12] Christou, C. (2023). The faces of contemporary American painting. Art in Translation, 15(4), 365–383. https://doi.org/10.1080/17561310.2023.2310519 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17561310.2023.2310519

[13] Chrzanowska-Kluczewska, E. (2024). Transmedial presence of verbal texts in architecture and public space. Between informativity and emotivity. Cognition, communication, discourse, 29, 7–24. https://doi.org/10.26565/2218-2926-2024-29-01 DOI: https://doi.org/10.26565/2218-2926-2024-29-01

[14] Coppola, W. (2023). Rudolf Arnheim: Perceptive dynamics in musical expression. Gestalt Theory, 45(3), 225-233. https://doi.org/10.2478/gth-2023-0019 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/gth-2023-0019

[15] Cudjoe, E. (2023). Making sense of Husserlian phenomenological philosophy in empirical research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 22. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069231171099 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069231171099

[16] Davis, C. (2020). It's complicated: Black hip hop feminist art commentary on US democracy. Journal of Hip Hop Studies, 7(1), Article 7. https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/jhhs/vol7/iss1/7

[17] De Benedetto, F., Ghiraldini, E., Capizzi, N., & Proverbio, A. M. (2024). Unraveling the interplay of emotions in art and music: An event-related potential investigation. Psychology of Music, 53(2), 235-257. https://doi.org/10.1177/03057356241245997 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/03057356241245997

[18] del Río, E. (2022). Bill Viola's figures of submersion as techniques of transindividual affect. Alphaville: Journal of Film and Screen Media, 23, 52–72. https://doi.org/10.33178/alpha.23.03 DOI: https://doi.org/10.33178/alpha.23.03

[19] Dobrolyubska, Y., Semko, Y., Tytar, O., Yuhan, N., & Byedakova, S. (2024) Art as a tool for socio-cultural transformation: A case study in the context of contemporary social change. Synesis, 16(1), 445-460. https://seer.ucp.br/seer/index.php/synesis/article/view/2953

[20] Droitcour, B. (2020, June 5). Rafael Lozano-Hemmer on seductive participation and the oppression of metrics. Art in America. https://www.artnews.com/art-in-america/interviews/rafael-lozano-hemmer-interview-interactive-art-surveillance-1202689903/

[21] Düzenli, K., & Perdahçı, N. Z. (2024). The role of digitalization in today's art: A perspective from NFT and artificial intelligence. Journal of Arts, 7(1), 43–59. https://doi.org/10.31566/arts.2291 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31566/arts.2291

[22] Feay, S. (2019). Bill Viola: The Road to St Paul's – can video art rise to sacred surroundings?. Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/5305a82c-23b5-11e9-b329-c7e6ceb5ffdf

[23] Gupta, N., & Zieske, C. (2024). Arts-based phenomenological research: Theory and praxis. Qualitative Psychology, 11(1), 95–109. https://doi.org/10.1037/qup0000285 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/qup0000285

[24] Hall, J., & Schofield, D. (2025). The value of creativity: Human produced art vs. AI-generated art. Art and Design Review, 13, 65-88. https://doi.org/10.4236/adr.2025.131005 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/adr.2025.131005

[25] Harris, D., & Holman Jones, S. (2022). A manifesto for posthuman creativity studies. Qualitative Inquiry, 28(5), 522-530. https://doi.org/10.1177/10778004211066632 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/10778004211066632

[26] Hefka, A. I. (2020). Art for the people, by the people: The role of artistic expression in American democracy [Unpublished master's thesis]. Camden, New Jersey: State University of New Jersey. https://doi.org/10.7282/t3-3hqy-jx03

[27] Hewitt, M. A. (2024, July 11). Light and color: The spirit-led work of James Turrell. Common Edge. https://commonedge.org/light-and-color-the-spirit-led-work-of-james-turrell/

[28] Horne, V. (2020). 'The personal clutter… the painterly mess…' Tracing a history of Carolee Schneemann's interior. Art History, 43(5), 888-1096. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8365.12529 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8365.12529

[29] Hughes, F. (2021). The temporality of contemporaneity and contemporary art: Kant, Kentridge and Cave Art as elective contemporaries. Kantian Review, 26(4), 583–602. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1369415421000467 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1369415421000467

[30] Jeon, M., Fiebrink, R., Edmonds, E. A. & Herath, D. (2019). From rituals to magic: Interactive art and HCI of the past, present, and future. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 131, 108-119. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2019.06.005 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2019.06.005

[31] Johnstone, J., & O'Hare, M. (2023). Art for policy and policy for art. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 30(2), 256–273. https://doi.org/10.1080/15236803.2023.2254631 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15236803.2023.2254631

[32] Jones, G., Chirino Chace, B., & Wright, J. (2020). Cultural diversity drives innovation: empowering teams for success. International Journal of Innovation Science, 12(3), 323-343. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIS-04-2020-0042 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIS-04-2020-0042

[33] Kelly, C. (2024). Sound in sight: Audio and sound-focused art exhibitions in New York between 1978 and 1984. Sound Studies, 10(2), 293–312. https://doi.org/10.1080/20551940.2024.2366083 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/20551940.2024.2366083

[34] Krys, K., Capaldi, C. A., Uchida, Y., Cantarero, K., Torres, C., Işık, İ., …Zelenski, J. M. (2022). Preference for modernization is universal but expected modernization trajectories are culturally diversified: A nine‐country study of folk theories of societal development. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 25(4), 731–746. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajsp.12533 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/ajsp.12533

[35] Loots, E., & van Andel, W. (2025). Artists as change agents in cross-sector partnerships: A typology. Poetics, 110, Article 101998. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.poetic.2025.101998 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.poetic.2025.101998

[36] MacKay, J. (2022). Art World Fields and Global Hegemonies. International Studies Quarterly, 66(3), Article sqac029. https://doi.org/10.1093/isq/sqac029 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/isq/sqac029

[37] Makhlouf, J. M. (2021). Husserl and Merleau-Ponty: A feminist critique of the phenomenological body [Unpublished master's thesis]. The American University in Cairo. https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/1617

[38] Mari, M. (2024). Experimental art and the body: Parangolé and the collective body. AM Journal of Art and Media Studies, 35. https://doi.org/10.25038/am.v0i28.606 DOI: https://doi.org/10.25038/am.v0i28.606

[39] Martínez, F. (2021). Ethnographic experiments with artists, designers and boundary objects: Exhibitions as a research method. UCLPress. https://doi.org/10.14324/111.9781800081086 DOI: https://doi.org/10.14324/111.9781800081086

[40] Martinovic, J. (2025, March 18). 10 famous installation artists whose work you have to know. Artsper magazine. https://blog.artsper.com/en/a-closer-look/installation-artists/

[41] Mattanovich, D., Altvater, M., Ata, Ö., & Bachleitner, S. (2024). Fermenting the future – on the benefits of a bioart collaboration. FEMS Yeast Research, 24, Article foae004, https://doi.org/10.1093/femsyr/foae004 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/femsyr/foae004

[42] McCallum, K. (2024). Art as inquiry: Theoretical perspectives on research in art and science. Leonardo, 57(1), 121–124. https://doi.org/10.1162/leon_a_02450 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1162/leon_a_02450

[43] McKnight, J. (2022, July 1). James Turrell creates "transcendent" Skyspace installation in the Rocky Mountains. DeZeen. https://www.dezeen.com/2022/07/01/james-turrell-skyspace-installation-rocky-mountains/

[44] Mohan, J. (2024). Hans Namuth's photographs and film studies of Jackson Pollock: Transforming American postwar avant-garde labor into popular consumer spectacle. Arts, 13(1), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13010005 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13010005

[45] Mol, J.M., van der Heijden, E.C.M. & Potters, J.J.M. (2020). (Not) alone in the world: Cheating in the presence of a virtual observer. Experimental Economics, 23, 961–978. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10683-020-09644-0 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10683-020-09644-0

[46] Morrissey, M. E. (2019). Border matters: A new materialist critique of installation art on the US-Mexico border. Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, 14(1), 3–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/17513057.2019.1658798 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17513057.2019.1658798

[47] Novak, E. (2024, November 19). Marina Abramovic: The art of endurance and performance. Composition Gallery. https://www.composition.gallery/journal/marina-abramovic-the-art-of-endurance-and-performance/

[48] Novak-Leonard, J. L., Skaggs, R., & Robinson, M. (2022). Innovative and artistic: Conceptions of creativity among the American public. Poetics, 90, Article 101599. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.poetic.2021.101599 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.poetic.2021.101599

[49] Pavliv, A., Mosendz, O., Rybchenko, O., Avula, A., & Fryz, P. (2024). Interplay of tradition and modernity in contemporary art practices. Amazonia Investiga, 13(75), 331-342. https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2024.75.03.28 DOI: https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2024.75.03.28

[50] Pedroso, J. E. P., Sasana, R., & Valencia, K. (2023). Social studies practice teacher's views on culturally responsive teaching. EIKI Journal of Effective Teaching Methods, 1(3). https://doi.org/10.59652/jetm.v1i3.34 DOI: https://doi.org/10.59652/jetm.v1i3.34

[51] Princenthal, N. (2024, May 16). Jenny Holzer shines new light in dark places. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/16/arts/design/jenny-holzer-guggenheim-art-signage.html

[52] Robbins, A. S. (2022). Beyond service-subordination: Materials experimentation in an art-science collaboration. Leonardo, 55(2), 191–195. https://doi.org/10.1162/leon_a_02101 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1162/leon_a_02101

[53] Routledge, L. (2022). Reconsidering 'Art' and 'Life': The multiple entanglements of Allan Kaprow's happenings. Journal of Avant-Garde Studies, 1(2), 243-268. https://doi.org/10.1163/25896377-00102004 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/25896377-00102004

[54] Schwarz, G. (2019, April 20). 'I want people to attend to the content' – an interview with Jenny Holzer. Apollo: The International Art Magazine. https://www.apollo-magazine.com/jenny-holzer-guggenheim-bilbao-interview/

[55] Silka, P. (2025, April 2). 1960s art and the age of pop. Artsper Magazine. https://blog.artsper.com/en/a-closer-look/art-in-the-1960s/

[56] Smith, T. (2019). Philosophy in the artworld: Some recent theories of contemporary art. Philosophies, 4(3), Article 37. https://doi.org/10.3390/philosophies4030037 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/philosophies4030037

[57] Smithson, G. (2019). Experimental and creative approaches to collecting and distributing new media art within regional arts organisations. Arts, 8(3), Article 85. https://doi.org/10.3390/arts8030085 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/arts8030085

[58] Sooudi, O. K. (2020). Alternative spaces & artist agency in the art market. Arts, 9(4), Article 116. https://doi.org/10.3390/arts9040116 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/arts9040116

[59] Storozhyk, M. (2024). Philosophy of future: Analytical overview of interaction between education, science, and artificial intelligence in the context of contemporary challenges. Futurity Philosophy, 3(1), 23–47. https://doi.org/10.57125/FP.2024.03.30.02 DOI: https://doi.org/10.57125/FP.2024.03.30.02

[60] Theodore, B. (2024) Contemporary art, twenty-first century utopia or mirror of everyday life. Art and Design Review, 12, 73-94. https://doi.org/10.4236/adr.2024.121006 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/adr.2024.121006

[61] Trimarchi, N. (2024). Peirce's suspended second, and art's 'Ethical Phenomenology'. Cosmos and History: The Journal of Natural and Social Philosophy, 20(2), 318–401. https://cosmosandhistory.org/index.php/journal/article/view/1178

[62] Uyar, S. (2022). Works of Bill Viola on the relationship between art and technology. Journal of Social, Humanities and Administrative Sciences, 8(56), 1038-1045. http://dx.doi.org/10.29228/JOSHAS.64394 DOI: https://doi.org/10.29228/JOSHAS.64394

[63] Griffin, J. (2024). 'It's about what's in your heart and soul. Technology's just some tool' – an interview with Bill Viola (1951–2024). Apollo: The International Art Magazine. https://www.apollo-magazine.com/bill-viola-kira-perov-video-art-interview-2014/

[64] Valance, H., & Zhurauliova, T. (2022). About time: Temporality in American art and visual culture. Panorama: Journal of the Association of Historians of American Art, 8(2). https://doi.org/10.24926/24716839.15008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.24926/24716839.15008

[65] Wang, V., & Wang, D. (2021). The impact of the increasing popularity of digital art on the current job market for artists. Art and Design Review, 9, 242-253. https://doi.org/10.4236/adr.2021.93019 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/adr.2021.93019

[66] Waterhouse, A. C. (2022). A celestial doctrine: James Turrell, art, and technology in cold war Los Angeles. Journal of American Studies, 56(5), 729–754. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0021875822000044 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0021875822000044

[67] Yahaya, S. R., Mohamad Jaafar, J., Mingquan, L., & Chunli, G. (2024). Recycling textile waste for craft industries: An experimental approach to eco-friendly papermaking. Environment-Behaviour Proceedings Journal, 9(SI23), 297–304. https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v9iSI23.6178 DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v9iSI23.6178

[68] Yunlong, W., Md Arif, M. F., Ziyi, Z., & Zifan, Y. (2024). A phenomenological expressionist approach to mixed media painting. Environment-Behaviour Proceedings Journal, 9(SI23), 269–275. https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v9iSI23.6173 DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v9iSI23.6173

Downloads

Published

2025-06-16

How to Cite

Otuonie, D. (2025). Experimental Artistic Practices in Contemporary U.S. Culture: Identity Transformation and Global Influence. International Journal on Culture, History, and Religion, 7(1), 183–207. https://doi.org/10.63931/ijchr.v7i1.120

Similar Articles

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 > >> 

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.