A Voyage Through Sound
This piece is from the residency my team We Amplify and I had at National Sawdust in Williamsburg. They had just installed the Meyer Sound’s Constellation acoustic system which allows artists to play with three-dimensional spatial sound using a multi-channel panning system. Basically, this sound system sonically transformed the space, and it’s incredible. Inspired by the newly installed system, we found this to be the perfect opportunity to create an immersive show on how Sonic, a deaf/HOH R&B singer-songwriter, navigates an ableist world.
A Voyage Through Sound is meant to center disabilities– it’s meant to feel inclusive and amplify Sonics disabilities in a way that felt humanizing. As a disabled person myself (Type 1 Diabetic) it was very easy for me to connect. I created visuals to amplify how Sonic experiences and navigates sound in the world.
The below pieces are reflection diaries that Sonic and I also worked on for the residency. Both pieces started off as voice notes and then we went from there. It was important to her to document as much as we could.
The raw, the lonely, the ableism, the masking, and the solitude.
DIARY ENTRY #1: PITY
When it came to shooting this piece I knew exactly how I wanted to approach it. The harsh picture Sonic painted left me feeling invisible and lonely and I thought what better way to visually amplify that than by using her shadow?
DIARY ENTRY #3: BURIED
In this piece, Sonic touches on her endless battle with balancing sound– her inner monologue + sound outside in the world. Almost like being buried in sound, thoughts, and feelings all at once. So when shooting this piece I wanted to capture her “buried” in light and also shoot her through this structure to make her feel out of reach.
Role: Art Director, Videographer, Editor