YANA eclipse,

YANA

Composed and performed by: Ati Cachimuel

Creative Team
Co-Media Design: Alex Oliszewski and Vita Berezina-Blackburn (five-channel installation)
Lighting Design: Michael Heasmond
Audio Design: Jean-Yves Münch

ACCAD Team
Norah Zuniga Shaw, Professor, Dance and Technology; Chair of the Motion Lab; Director, ACCAD; Co-Sponsor, Livable Futures Project
Vita Berezina Blackburn, Motion Capture Specialist, Motion Lab
Alex Oliszewski, Associate Professor of Media Design, Motion Lab Committee
Jean-Yves Münch, Sound Associate
Elaine Smith, Administrative Manager
Michael Hesmond, Production Manager
Nina Wolf, MFA Candidate in Design

Humanities Faculty Collaborators
Michelle Wibbelsman, Associate Professor, Department of Spanish and Portuguese
Laura Siragusa, Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies
Brad Dubos, Department of English
Elvia Andia Grageda, Department of Spanish and Portuguese (Quechua language)
Carlos Rivas, Department of History of Art

A full team list including students may be found here: ACCAD project proposal.

OSU, ACCAD
Motion Lab

2024

Project Overview

YANA—meaning “darkness” in Kichwa—is a multidisciplinary performance work composed by Kichwa Otavalo artist Ati Cachimuel. Rooted in Andean cosmology, the piece reimagines Indigenous tradition through a layered integration of pre-Columbian bamboo and ceramic instruments, digital programming (MAX/MSP), electric guitar, vocalization, and ritual chant.

Centered on a mythic figure from the Inti Raymi celebration, the performance extended beyond sound into an immersive sensory landscape—featuring live visuals, movement, and olfactory design to evoke memory, myth, and ancestral presence.

Collaboration and Process

YANA was the culmination of a multi-year research initiative led by Norah Zúñiga Shaw and Michelle Wibbelsman, and developed through an artist residency at ACCAD. I collaborated directly with Ati Cachimuel and the broader research ayllu, contributing to the design, programming, and production of an original multi-channel video performance installation.

Working in close partnership with Ati Cachimuel, Vita Berezina-Blackburn, Michael Hesmond, and Jean-Yves Münch, I co-designed a live video system that responded in real time to the sonic and physical dynamics of performance. My contributions focused on the project’s techno-dramaturgy, supporting both the cultural and compositional structure of the work through integrative theatrical media design. 

Institutional Synergy

This project reflects the synergy between ACCAD and The Department of TFMA, and highlights the generative potential of my dual appointment at The Ohio State University, demonstrating the value I bring as a researcher, artist, and educator collaborating across creative and academic communities. This project also exemplifies my commitment to performance as research, and to transdisciplinary collaborations that engage performance grounded in cultural and embodied knowledge, live media systems, and responsive aesthetics.

More Information

Watch the Project Video: YANA

Kawsay Ukhunchay Project Information: Andean and Amazonian Indigenous Art and Cultural Artifacts Research Collection Project Announcement

ACCAD Project Information ACCAD Project Proposal