American Artist is a New York-based interdisciplinary artist whose work challenges the intersections of race, technology, and identity in the digital age. Through sculpture, video, performance, and digital media, their practice critiques systemic inequities while offering nuanced reflections on power, surveillance, and the Black radical tradition.
Using "thought experiments" American Artists seeks to interrogate contemporary social and political structures. Their practice critically examines police violence, racialized surveillance, and the role of big tech, using speculative fiction and historical inquiry to reframe dominant narratives. Recently taking the decision to focus on work that is "life-affirming," taking note from the abolitionist Mariame Kaba; this process has involved taking a critical lens to history, migration, family, and ancestry. Central to American's work is the concept of "speculative artefacts"—objects, tools, and moving images that blur the line between reality and fiction, inviting viewers to question the nature of truth and historical memory. This approach draws from Saidiya Hartman's notion of "critical fabulation," constructing alternative narratives that expose overlooked or hidden histories. Satire often plays a role in their work, subtly disarming audiences while engaging with themes that are both sombre and absurd.
This ethos extends to their legal name change in 2013 to "American Artist," a gesture that challenges notions of identity, authorship, and national belonging.
Residency supported by SPACE
