Cosmic Bloom: Shape of Breath
A multi-sensorial immersive experience of Indigiqueer lifeways
Cosmic Bloom: Shape of Breath is a multi-sensorial immersive experience of lifeways, ritual, music, and flora conjuring an expansive world rooted in Indigenous Futurism and Queer/Trans joy. Through blended reality installation and emergent performance, Cosmic Bloom invites you to seed future universes, foster relations, and cultivate kinship.
This project invites participants into a transformative space designed for rest, reflection, and cosmic exploration. The installation features interactive elements such as flower crown headphones that gently whisper star stories shared by community members, a community altar to write words of love to trans youth, and a Virtual Reality (VR) experience serves as a portal into a celestial realm, where Indigiqueer beings offer embodied movement and songs from Ty’s (in-progress compositional) album, Shape of Breath.
At the heart of the experience is a spiral galaxy that invites participants to connect through sound, breath, and presence. The space holds a number of offerings including workshops, gatherings, performances, and community meals. The experience is open to all, with a focus on creating an affirming environment for Transgender/Indigiqueer participants. This project is a celebration of possibility, belonging, and the sacred breath that connects us all.
Cosmic Bloom: Shape of Breath is currently in development with plans to premier at Z Space in San Francisco. In May of 2025, Fusebox Festival hosted a development residency for the team to explore the merging of physical, digital, and performance in partnership with the Museum of Human Achievement.
Creative Team:
Written, Composed and Performed by Ty Defoe
Production, Projection and Creative Tech Design by Kate Freer
Sound Design by Zac Traeger
Costume Design by Andrew Jordan
Assistant Creative Tech Design by Nitsan Scharf
Integrated Lighting System by Zach Young
Lighting Design Gavin Strawnato
Assistant Production Design Joshua Martin
Headphone Fabrication by Marisa Lawrence and Matthew Smith
Flowers provided by Kate Taylor / kabloom
Culinary Artist Luna Vela
Motion Capture Engineer Brandon LeJeune
Production Assistants Elena Salinas, Janna Belcher, and Siena Theivagt
Garden Guides: Sarah J. Elliott, Elena Salinas, Gavin Strawnato, Nitsan Scharf and Siena Theivagt