S Y N T H E S I S
Synthesis is a multimedia performance representing the culmination of my experiences in my master's program at CU Boulder's ATLAS Institute and my creative interests.
This would have not been possible without my incredible friends and collaborators:
Justin Gitlin - advising/lighting tech
Max Messenger Bouricius - music composition
Elle Hong - choreography
Joey Laform - set fabrication
I am also incredibly thankful to Scott Morrison and his production company Eye Candy Productions for immortalizing my performance through their immaculate documentation.
PROCESS
The foundational component of the thesis performance was the music–as it is what the choreography, projected visuals, and dmx-mapped lighting fixtures were composed around. Max Messenger Bouricius and I spent roughly three months composing, revising, and fine-tuning the music in order to ensure that it would effectively represent the aesthetic of the performance.
The completed Ableton project for the thesis performance.
After the music was composed, the next component that was put together for the performance was the choreography. Working with Elle Hong, she and I arranged the choreography over a two month period. Having taken a dance class with Elle during my time at CU Boulder and knowing the styles of dance she specializes in, I knew that I wanted Elle to help me arrange the choreography for my thesis performance.
Choreography in progress at Denver’s ART GYM.
Having the choreography arranged, I designed the set in order to best set the stage for the aesthetic of the performance. I then brought my design to Joey LaForm and worked with him to fine-tune the dimensions, orientation, and build of the set components. Once the shapes were constructed, they were painted and lined with 600 density non-addressable RGB LED strips.
Joey LaForm constructing the shapes for the set.
Once the set was conceptualized and constructed, I worked with Justin Gitlin to fabricate the DMX decoding system in order to control the LED-lined shapes. After creating a source animation in Adobe After Effects, we used MadMapper’s DMX feature to draw signals from the animation. I then created additional environmental animations to be projected on the dance space to compliment the shapes.
Prepping connections for each of the seven shapes to receive DMX signals.
Joey LaForm, August Frame, and I suspending the set from the Black Box Experimental Studio grid.
On April 29th, 2021, Joey LaForm and I–along with the help of my dear friend August Frame–brought the set pieces ATLAS’s Black Box Experimental Studio and suspended the shapes in preparation for my performance on May 7th.