ecological art
theatrical design
installation & studio art
slithering brush, hissing creek
nature’s play
about
BIOphelia: A Performance-Infused Scholarship Symposium
Scenic and Projection Design, Panelist, & Facilitator
Atrium & Film Forum, Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, Ithaca NY
Directed and Adapted from Shakespeare’s Hamlet by Theo Black
2024
BIOphelia is an eco-feminist communion around the character of Ophelia in Hamlet. Centered on Ophelia’s relationship to medicinal herbs, the core symposium united scholars and practitioners from varied fields to open an ecological window into Elizabethan Europe. I sculpted the eco-scenographic elements for the featured live performances: Ophelia’s botanic dress and a stream overgrown by invasive plants. The sculptures were assembled from scavenged/repurposed materials and plants cultivated by the Cornell Botanic Gardens. The structures and plants were distributed to the audience, recirculated as community fundraisers, reinstalled as artworks, or composted.
Eco-scenographic materials: willow, wire fencing, wood palettes, hemp rope, potted plants (rosemary, rue, calendula, eucalyptus), non-native plants (oriental bittersweet, bush honeysuckle, bush privet, common buckthorn, Japanese knotweed), natural dyes (beet, red cabbage, turmeric, paprika, pokeweed, sumac, soy milk), scrap muslin, burlap, fresh flowers, plastic trough, mannequin, projection. All non-organic materials were sourced from the community.
More information about this project
Harvested riparian invasives ready to take over the theater
A Midsummer Yosemite’s Dream
Scenic Design & Actor (Theseus)
Curry Village Amphitheatre, Yosemite National Park & Wallace Dutra Amphitheatre at UC Merced, Merced CA
Adapted from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night’s Dream & Directed by Katherine Brokaw
2024
A joyous adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream illuminated the dangers posed by neglected forests. My scenic design took the form of a giant sequoia fire scar. I erected this modular and portable sculpture made from branches and cardboard collected in Yosemite the day of each show. As the characters grappled with how to better behave in the wild fairytale-like surroundings, we learned about the need for prescribed fire to stabilize the drastically changing landscape.
Click here for a review of this project
After Nature Had Drawn A Few Breaths
Three-channel video and nine-channel light installation
Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts, Ithaca NY
1 hour loop; 8 PM - 12 AM; April 14 - May 6, 2021
"After Nature Had Drawn A Few Breaths" reclaims imposing concrete walls with environmentally inspired projections and lighting. Two video streams followed the changing seasons, animated by the currents of wind and water as cinematographer. A third narrative-poetic projection presented collected photographs, poetry, and short video reflections on local ecological phenomena and environmentalist action. Cycling lights represented the changes of seasons, elements, and time.
Click here for a review of this project
DreamTrain
Lighting Design
Tishman Auditorium at the New School, New York, NY
By Mendi + Keith Obadike, with the American Composer’s Orchestra
2023
As You Like It
Mask-maker
Handmade paper, wire, leaves and grass from the performance site
The Cherry Arts Space, Ithaca NY
By William Shakespeare, Directed by Samuel Buggeln
2023
Billy Elliot: The Musical
Projection Design
Mainstage at The Hangar Theater, Ithaca NY
By Elton John and Lee Hall, Directed by Courtney Young. Photos by Rachel Phillipson.
2023
Crisscrossing the Galaxy at Faster than the Speed of Light in Search of a Hug
Scenic Design
KIDDSTUFF Stage at The Hangar Theater, Ithaca NY
By Paco Madden, Directed by Edgardo Soto. Photos by Rachel Phillipson.
2023
Desdemona
Projection Design
Kiplinger Theater at The Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, Ithaca NY
By Toni Morrison and Rokia Traore, Directed by Beth Milles
2023
Baby Rock / Rock de Bebe
Scenic & Lighting Design
Black Box at the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, Ithaca NY
By Carlos de Matteis, Adapted & Directed by Taylor Bazos
2022
The Pleasures of the Quarrel: Three Parisian Operatic Hits from the Contested Season of 1753
Projection & Lighting Design
Bailey Hall, Ithaca NY
Excerpts from operas by Mondonville, Orlandini, and Dauvergne
Adapted & Directed by Rebecca Harris Warrick & Catherine Turocy,
with the NY Baroque Dance Company & Cornell Chamber Orchestra
2022
The Willow Cabin
Director
Black Box at the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, Ithaca NY
By William Shakespeare, Adapted from Twelfth Night for ASL with Amanda Vialva and Juliette Wolpert
2023
particles suspended in their own fantasy at the southernpost tip of Cayuga Lake