HEARING PICTURES: THIS SHIP ISN’T SINKING ITSELF

THIS SHIP ISN’T SINKING ITSELF is a new collaboration between violist/composer Christian Frederickson and projection designers Joshua Higgason and Supreetha Krishnan. It features original compositions for viola and electronics and immersive video design. THIS SHIP ISN’T SINKING ITSELF engages with our very specific moment in history, questioning deep feelings of lack of agency and a world culture that seems out of control. 

HEARING PICTURES is a series of events curated by Christian Frederickson at MIT Theater Arts featuring Boston-area artists exploring the intersections of music, visual art, sound, and the moving image. Initial support for the series was provided by the Council for the Arts at MIT. 

CHRISTIAN FREDERICKSON is a violist, composer, and sound designer who specializes in live music performance for theater and dance. He was a founding member and one of the principal songwriters of the Louisville, KY-based instrumental band Rachel's, who released 6 albums on Quarterstick Records between 1995 and 2003. As a solo artist, Frederickson has released seven albums since 2011 and has recorded viola with Rodan, Shipping News, Seluah, Rachel Grimes, Occurrence, Greg King, Rivulets, Mission of Burma, The For Carnation, Per Mission, Samara Lubelski, and Shannon Wright. Since 2004 Frederickson has worked primarily in theater and dance and has taught design at MIT since 2019. Frederickson was trained as a classical musician and holds a bachelor's degree from The Peabody Conservatory and a master's degree from The Juilliard School. 
 

JOSHUA HIGGASON is a video, lighting, scenic, and interactive designer for theater, opera, concerts, and live performances. Recent projects include Hansel und Gretel (projections; Teatro Alla Scala); King Arthur (projections; Statsoper Berlin); Die Dreigroschenoper (projections; Salzburger Festspiele); Nico Muhly’s Control (Five Landscapes for Orchestra) (video, scenic; Utah Symphony); Ira Glass' Seven Things I've Learned Tour (projections); Persona (video and lighting; Dir. Jay Scheib); Sufjan Stevens’ Carrie and Lowell Tour 2015 (video); Radiolab’s Apocalyptical Tour (video, scenic, lighting);  Powder her Face (video; NYC Opera; Dir. Jay Scheib); and The Ambassador (video; BAM; Dir. John Tiffany). He has designed and consulted for The Builders Association, Big Dance Theater, MoMA, MassMoCA, Theatre for One/Christine Jones, The Windmill Factory,  and TED. He teaches design at MIT. 

SUPREETHA KRISHNAN (she/her)  is a multi-media designer for live-music events and who likes to  explore how live performance can be more participatory.  Currently, she is a Media Assistant at the Art, Culture & Technology program at MIT. She has previously worked with the MIT Climate Machine to design XR installations of different scales for music festivals. She enjoys VJ-ing, singing, songwriting, illustrating, playing sports, and spending time with her dogs. 

Host or Publisher MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology and MIT Music and Theater Arts.