Birthed somewhere at the interface of some long-standing artistic interests of mine and the inspiration of my current experience, Photosynthesizer is a sonic art installation that embodies a particularly fulfilling and explorative creative process. This piece is a reflection of the shelter I experienced during COVID-19 lockdown, a shelter that kept me safe while simultaneously leaving me longing for the impossibilities of locational freedom. A few months deep into Glasgow’s third of such lockdowns I found myself alarmingly desensitized to spending a worrying majority of my time between the same four bedroom walls, my only seeming contact with any semblance of nature embodied in my gradual adoption of a multitude of houseplants into my 10th floor city flat. As a Chicago native accustomed to surroundings of massive buildings, the oceanic rolling of the Scottish hillsides visible from my living room window was a seemingly intangible reality for which I yearned. Photosynthesizer is my expression of that yearning for an interaction with the natural realm from sheltered and safe (but lonely) perch. The piece intertwines inspiration from what I had, like the colors of the sunset I saw every evening, with what I didn’t, namely an interplay with the outside world through touch and movement. Additionally, this piece draws inspiration from digital tools and instrument that have long since held personal interest, particularly touchless but movement-based instruments such as the theremin and laser harp that challenge the paradigms of touch-based sound producing movements as necessary in acoustic performance. Both novel and captivating but with an easily understood performance mechanism, the laser harp intrigued me especially in a potential oxymoronic incorporation with natural imagery and elements. This contrast between the digital and natural in Photosynthesizer exemplifies my own experience of constant connection to technology and the digital realm while simultaneously experiencing a desire for a seemingly inaccessible meditative escape into the natural world.

Photosynthesizer

Dionna Bidny
Forever an advocate of interdisciplinary education and exploration, I have pursued many avenues of learning, including a Bachelor’s in Biomedical Engineering, a Master’s of Music in Musicology, and my current medical studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago. I’m motivated by the excitement of finding something new when I blur the lines between disciplines, manifested in innovative adventures combining music with tech, or engineering with medicine. In addition to pursuit of these subjects, I am involved in work in disability advocacy. I aim to someday create accessible spaces for Disabled musicians and to continue to advocate for equity in the arts world. In my free time I can be found playing piano, crocheting, climbing rocks, and learning an unnecessary number of facts about cicadas.