This thesis investigates the lighting design theory Light Inside Out, which is the technique of shaping light toward a creation of lighting installation in performance utilizing a lighting installation in performance. It analyzes the differences between two lighting methods: 1) Illuminating a performance by theatrical lighting fixtures from outside the performance space and 2) Illuminating a performance with onstage lighting installations. Examples of lighting installation work done by several celebrated artists are also examined in order to demonstrate the unique creative advantage of using lighting installation in performance. Finally, a presentation of my design process for developing lighting installations for past works as well as my most recently developed designs for “ The Difficulty of Crossing a Field” and “Sunyata: Transfigurations in Silk” are included along with pertinent supporting materials, lighting installation process photos, and production photos. / text

This project explored a new work in the lighting and video area of the entertainment industry. This thesis archives the creative process of this specific new piece, resulting in a realized and finished work open to the public. The Box opened in the Oscar Brockett Theater on the University of Texas at Austin campus on March 19, 2012, and ran from 10 am to 7 pm for three days. The Box was an installation piece of art that told a story. This seemingly simple structure of a large black box contained a surprising inner life. The sculpture had an opening cut into its side, which upon entering transports the viewer into a space with a modified perspective. More than one person can view the piece at a time. Visitors entered the box and became immersed in a world of manipulated lighting, video, and sound. Characters existed in the form of animated light, color, and audio. These characters expressed elemental energies of air, fire, earth, and water that communicated primal emotions. The Box wove a narrative fabricated from lighting, animation, sound, and manipulation of perspective, without using traditional methods of storytelling such as actors or speech. While The Box was on display, viewers visited multiple times and interacted with the environment in different ways. Dancers danced in The Box, actors delivered monologues, and some viewers simply lay on the floor and became part of the art itself. / text