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Deborah Johnson

@candystations

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Visual Librettist
Professor of Time and Light @profdebbysterns
Guardian of Warrior Husky Xena
Wannabe Astronaut
Conjuring @hndsgnl

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LIFE IS SCARY — Bonnie “Prince” Billy
An excerpt from Life Is Scary (Horses), directed by Braden King.

For this piece, I developed a series of spline-based symbols and animated light drawings, then built and composited them into the landscape using X-Particles, Unreal Engine, and Gaussian splats, working with Todd Reynolds in NYU Tandon’s immersive LED environment at the Navy Yard, where Braden was able to direct and capture the scenes in real-time.

The marks exist as signals, traces, and atmospheric beings — appearing and disappearing within the terrain like messages from somewhere just out of reach, or, in Braden’s words, “an elegy left behind for a future that might not remember us — or maybe one that might be trying to learn who we were.” 🖤✨

Light Drawing Majick + Visual Compositing: Deborah Johnson / CandyStations Director: Braden King @truckstop
Music: Will Oldham @wignifier  Production: NYU Tandon @ The Yard @nyutheyard by @candystations

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3 days ago

HILDEGARD

A glimpse of visions in motion.

Artwork + Projection Design: Deborah Johnson

Composer: Sarah Kirkland Snider
Director: Elkhanah Pulitzer @elkhanahpulitzer
Movement: Laurel Jenkins @laureljenkinsdance

Captured by Kat Altman

Eternal gratitude to my video associate on the project, @louiselessel for helping me translate Hildegard’s living light into @touchdesigner responsive Lumia; Isadora programmer @solitariea, for bringing it to the stage; and @idmnyu @evercoast for the volumetric capture and developmental support.

Deeper looks into each vision’s process to come.

@prototypefest @bethmorrisonprojects @sarahkirklandsnider by @candystations

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8 days ago

Exciting news: Deborah Johnson’s performance visuals for EYE OF MNEMOSYNE from my @Nonesuchrecords + @newamrecords orchestral release, FORWARD INTO LIGHT, are out now as official videos! 🎊

Here’s a clip from Mvt. II Mnemonic: “Wheel of the Muses.” (Fans of my opera HILDEGARD might recognize a borrowed tune from the divine love trio…)

This movement enters the world of the long-forgotten but highly influential Kodak Girls — luminous sparks heralding the advent of commercial photography, transforming memory into crystallized form.

‘Eye of Mnemosyne’ is a seven-movement multimedia orchestral work commissioned by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra for its centennial season, with a visual libretto and projection design by Deborah Johnson @candystations.

The album FORWARD INTO LIGHT was recorded by Metropolis Ensemble, conducted by Andrew Cyr, and produced by Silas Brown. Released on Nonesuch Records and New Amsterdam Records.

Head over to @nonesuchrecords YouTube and watch the whole series!

Music: Sarah Kirkland Snider
@sarahkirklandsnider
Orchestra: @metropolisensemble
Visual design: Deborah Johnson
TouchDesigner-generated particles: Louise Lessél @louiselesel
Software: @touchdesigner
👁️👑⚙️ by @candystations

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2 months ago

HILDEGARD
LA Opera / PROTOTYPE

An award-winning opera by Sarah Kirkland Snider, directed by Elkhanah Pulitzer.

Artwork + Projection Design for a visual world drawn from Hildegard von Bingen’s manuscripts, visions, and writings — incorporating hand drawing, digital painting, volumetric capture, spline-based animation, and audio-responsive projection. Motion and process per vision to come.

Yesterday also marked Hildegard’s feast day — I’m always late to the party. ✨

Artwork + Projection Design: Deborah Johnson
Composer: @sarahkirklandsnider
Director: @elkhanahpulitzer
Movement: @laureljenkinsdance
Producer: @bethmorrisonprojects
Presented by: @laopera / @prototypefest
Photography:
Maria Baranova (1-2, 4–6); Jono Freeman (3) by @candystations

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13 days ago

How do we stop time and preserve memory? What do we choose, and why?

👁️ In the “Memento” chapter of EYE OF MNEMOSYNE, we see the Kodak Girls gradually shift from play and adventure toward preserving familial memory. Photography becomes a defense against time—a way to preserve precious moments.

👁️ The lens contracts. The girls move into doorways and windows, documenting their children and families. The photograph leaves the camera and enters the family album, where images are gathered, ordered, and preserved as a record of a life.

👁️ As cameras become part of the family unit, we begin to see men enter the frame forebodingly, as the Kodak Girls prepare to send them off to war.

🎬 About the Project:
EYE OF MNEMOSYNE is a eight-movement multimedia orchestral work commissioned by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra for its centennial season.
* Visual Libretto & Projection Design: Deborah Johnson (@candystations)
* Music Featured On: My 2026 album FORWARD INTO LIGHT
* Performed By: @metropolisensemble, conducted by Andrew Cyr
* Produced By: Silas Brown
* Label: @nonesuchrecords & @newamsterdamrecords
🔗 Link in bio to @nonesuchrecords’ YouTube to watch the whole EYE OF MNEMOSYNE video series ✨ by @candystations

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21 days ago

On July 31, the Aspen Music Festival will present a semi-staged performance of my opera, HILDEGARD, featuring its extraordinary young professionals and the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble, conducted by Tim Weiss.

Aspen Music Festival co-commissioned the opera with Beth Morrison Projects, and I’m thrilled and so grateful to have the Festival bring the piece to life again here, now.

Many thanks to Alan Fletcher, Patrick Chamberlain, Renée Fleming, Patrick Summers, Tim Weiss, and the rest of the Aspen Music Festival cast and crew.

Thanks, too, to director Elkhanah Pulitzer, directorial assistant Zoe Lesser, and projection designer Deborah Johnson for bringing some elements of our LA/NYC production to bear in this new iteration.

See you there! 💫

(This trailer features the live performance vocals of Raha Mirzadegan, Mikaela Bennett, and Blythe Gaissert (Angels, 1, 2, and 3), and the instrumentalists of NOVUS NY, conducted by Gabriel Crouch.) ✨ by @candystations

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2 months ago

Bonnie ‘Prince” Billy: “Life is Scary (Horses)”

Link to YouTube / full screen in bio
Please watch large and loud over there
Full credits at YouTube link

Director: Braden King | @truckstop
Co-Conspirator: Hillary Fyfe Spera | @hillaryspera
Production Company: Truckstop //
Cinematographer: Eric Lin | @holdtheframe
Additional Cinematography: Blake Johnson | @slake856

Light Magick:
Deborah Johnson | Candystations | @candystations

Virtual Production: NYU Tandon @ The Yard | @nyutandon
Thanks to the Integrated Design and Media Program
at NYU Tandon School of Engineering | @idmnyu
Luke DuBois - Director of Research,
Integrated Design and Media | @rlukedubois
Todd Bryant - Special Effects Supervisor | @todernst

Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy Performance Video:
Will Oldham | @wignifier
Sally Timms Performance Video:
Bloo Van Alst | @bluevanalst

Editor: Laura Israel | @dontblinkrobertfrank
Assistant Editor: Alex Riccio | @alexriccio17

Color by Company 3 | @company_3
Colorist: Tim Mascik | @timmasick

Cameras and Lenses provided by
Panavision | @panavisionofficial

Additional camera body provided by Picture Theory
Additional lenses provided by TCS | @tcsfilm

Shot on Location at Middlegate Station, Fallon, NV
and on Highway 50, America’s Loneliest Road
#middlegatestation

Thanks to Cheyenne and Travis Anderton, Derrick Chiaratti and Wyatt Clark for their generous hospitality.

Special Thanks:
Jason Goldman, Carly Hugo, Paul de Jong, Joseph Krings, Andy Lilien, Wes Morin, Will Oldham, Matt Parker, Mike Quinn, Scott Soens, Hillary Fyfe Spera and Chris Wiezorek.

From No Quarter Records:

“Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy (@wignifier) – the persona / stage-name of musician Will Oldham - will release his new studio record, “We Are Together Again”, on Friday, March 6th, 2026.

This song – which Oldham describes as a “spiritual cover” of the Sally Timms / Jon Langford composition “Horses” - features Timms, (#sallytimms) on the track and in the video. King also directed the video for Oldham’s 2004 cover of “Horses” (from the album Greatest Palace Music).”

@noquarterrex
@dominorecordco taken in Middlegate Station by @candystations

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7 months ago

Feeling nostalgic for the days of Adz. The uniting of many singular artists in their #topform for the performance of an apocalyptic space rock opera, written by Sufjan Stevens in the spirit of artist and self-proclaimed prophet Royal Robertson. This here is a teaser/trailer for the final journey @bricbrooklyn’s iconic bandshell. Forever my north ⭐️. #gravestoneproject #perfectenschlag 👽 🌋

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Creative Director: @sufjan
Visual/Projection Design: me with support as ever from @brianchasalow and @vade001
Lighting Design: @benstanton_official
Set Design: @adrianjonesdesign
Technical Director: @videodesignernyc
Production Manager: @theartcounsel

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#livevisuals #projectionmapping #concertdesign #liveperformance #vdmx #projectiondesign #stagedesign #ageofadz #unity #qtz #vj #royalrobertson #sufjanstevens #deborahjohnson #candystations by @candystations

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3 years ago

Composer 👸 @sarahkirklandsnider and I recently premiered EYE OF MNEMOSYNE, a 23’, seven-movement multimedia orchestral work commissioned by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra for its centennial season. The piece presents memory embodied as a deity while illuminating the influence of George Eastman’s Kodak through a lens of nostalgia.

The Kodak Girls — the independent, stylish, and sophisticated women conceived to evolve with and proliferate Eastman’s cameras — are presented as descendants of Mnemosyne, muses who influenced and inspired how Americans began to arrange, capture, and experience moments of their lives using the instrument of the camera and the power of the snapshot.

This visual and documentation are from the final movement, Psyche. Here, the Kodak Muses return to their celestial mother source after their journey throughout the narrative, from birth to the horrors of World War I.

The projections were mapped to the architecture of the Eastman Theatre — paying further homage to its founder and legacy.

Special thanks to @defaulteric for mapping prowess and @louiselessel for Touch Designer ✨ .
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#contemporaryclassical #composer #contemporarycomposer #femalecomposer #womencomposers #orchestra #orchestralmusic #multimedia #multimediaorchestra #composerlife #womeninmusic #videoart #video #composersofinstagram #femaleartist #womenartists #musiccomposition #newmusic #rochesterphilharmonic #kodakgirls #georgeeastman #kodak #deborahjohnson #sarahkirklandsnider #eyeofmnemosyne #visuallibretto #livevisuals #performancedesign #touchdesigner #c4dart by @candystations

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2 years ago

I am so proud of this thing that visual artist Deborah Johnson (@candystations) and I made together.

On January 25 and 26, the Schenectady-Saratoga Symphony Orchestra will perform EYE OF MNEMOSYNE, a multimedia orchestral work in eight movements that explores the intersection of memory, technological innovation, and cultural transformation.

The story for the piece was all Deborah. She basically gave me a visual libretto — eight movements with alluring titles, accompanied by a description and some rough visual sketches — and I wrote the music for them. I sent her midi mockups, and she then tailored her animations to the music.

Drawing on the myth of Mnemosyne, the Greek Goddess of Memory, the work (commissioned by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra) reframes George Eastman, pioneer of popular photography, and his groundbreaking Kodak campaigns as conduits for the evolution of American storytelling and visual identity. The eight movements trace photography's historical and cultural impact, paying particular homage to the Kodak Girls — Mnemosyne's muses, as it were — sophisticated, independent figures who symbolized modernity and creativity during photography’s golden age. Blending mythology with history, Eye of Mnemosyne invites audiences to reflect on the many ways the art of photography has shaped how we remember and frame our lives.

   I. Prelude: "Eye of Mnemosyne"
  2. Mnemonic: "Wheel of the Muses"
  3. Mori: "Memory of the Dead"
  4. Vive: "Power of the Snapshot"
  5. Memento: "Defense Against Time"
  6. Nostos: "War Story"
  7.  Ephemera: "Fragmented Memory"
  8. Psyche (Epilogue): "Lens of Nostalgia"

Here are two clips:
1. from 3. Mori: "Memory of the
Dead”
2. from 8. Psyche (Epilogue): "Lens of Nostalgia"

Also on the concert is the amazing violinist, Lara St. John. ✨

Get over there, northeastern New York!

@uph_saratoga
@atproctors
@larastjohn by @candystations

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2 years ago

In a little over two weeks, my all-orchestral album FORWARD INTO LIGHT, featuring Metropolis Ensemble and conducted by Andrew Cyr, produced by Grammy-winning engineers Silas Brown and Mike Tierney, will be co-released by Nonesuch Records and New Amsterdam Records. ✨

Here’s a clip from Deborah Johnson’s film for our multimedia work ‘Eye of Mnemosyne,’ which explores the intersection of memory, innovation, and cultural transformation. Drawing on the myth of Mnemosyne, the Greek Goddess of Memory, the piece pays particular homage to the Kodak Girls — Mnemosyne’s muses, as it were — sophisticated, independent figures who symbolized modernity and creativity during photography’s golden age.

IV. Vivere: “Power of the Snapshot” Photography becomes a tool of liberation with the invention of Kodak’s portable cameras and endless exposure. The Kodak Girls, now independent and adventurous, embody the spontaneity and accessibility of the snapshot, reflecting America’s spirit of innovation and progress.

FORWARD INTO LIGHT releases on February 27th. Pre-order is available now through the link in my bio. 🌱 by @candystations

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8 months ago

In a little over a week, my all-orchestral album FORWARD INTO LIGHT, featuring Metropolis Ensemble and conducted by Andrew Cyr, produced by Grammy-winning engineers Silas Brown and Mike Tierney, will be co-released by Nonesuch Records and New Amsterdam Records. ✨✨

Here’s a clip from Deborah Johnson’s stunning film for our multimedia work Eye of Mnemosyne, which explores the intersection of memory, innovation, and cultural transformation. Drawing on the myth of Mnemosyne, the Greek Goddess of Memory, the piece pays particular homage to the Kodak Girls — Mnemosyne’s muses, as it were — sophisticated, independent figures who symbolized modernity and creativity during photography’s golden age.

VI. Nostos: “War Story”During World War I, photography bridged the emotional distance between home and the front lines. The Kodak Girls symbolize resilience and nostalgia, their images offering a sense of stability amidst upheaval while preserving the stories of those lost to war.

Visual Art Credit: @candystations in collaboration with @louiselessel

Forward Into Light releases on February 27th. Pre-order is available now through the link in my bio. 🌱 by @candystations

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7 months ago