The first piece displays a metal box, with spirals engraved on the outside. As the box opens, smoke rushes out, with nebulas, clouds containing gas and dust, bursting out from the smoke. The second piece shows a chalice engraved with vines and flowers. The cup is knocked over, with a liquid filled with stars spilling out. A girl floats on the top of the liquid and a butterfly hovers above her.
The first piece displays a metal box, with spirals engraved on the outside. As the box opens, smoke rushes out, with nebulas, clouds containing gas and dust, bursting out from the smoke. The second piece shows a chalice engraved with vines and flowers. The cup is knocked over, with a liquid filled with stars spilling out. A girl floats on the top of the liquid and a butterfly hovers above her.
The first piece displays a metal box, with spirals engraved on the outside. As the box opens, smoke rushes out, with nebulas, clouds containing gas and dust, bursting out from the smoke. The second piece shows a chalice engraved with vines and flowers. The cup is knocked over, with a liquid filled with stars spilling out. A girl floats on the top of the liquid and a butterfly hovers above her.
The first piece displays a metal box, with spirals engraved on the outside. As the box opens, smoke rushes out, with nebulas, clouds containing gas and dust, bursting out from the smoke. The second piece shows a chalice engraved with vines and flowers. The cup is knocked over, with a liquid filled with stars spilling out. A girl floats on the top of the liquid and a butterfly hovers above her.

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The Drink of the Gods/The Box of Eternal Beauty

Brooke Flanagan

February 2nd, 2025

Major: Graphic Design

Genre/Medium: Digital Illustration

About the work:

“The Box of Eternal Beauty” is an abstract, digital illustration that depicts the moment Psyche opens the box, which supposedly contains part of Persephone’s beauty. She opens the box, unleashing a cloud of black smoke that puts her in a coma. The second piece is titled The Drink of the Gods and is another abstract, digital illustration. Here the piece depicts the moment Psyche drinks Ambrosia causing her to shed her mortal form and become a goddess, allowing her to live together forever with Eros. The main symbol from the myth used throughout both pieces is the butterfly, as Psyche, the Goddess of Soul, is commonly depicted as possessing butterfly wings. A butterfly can be seen hovering over the chalice in “The Drink of the Gods” when Psyche is about to ascend to godhood. Butterfly nebulas can also be seen bursting from the dark smoke in “The Box of Eternal Beauty.” These nebulas along with star fields contained in the spilled Ambrosia were my way of adding ties to space and the beauty of the stellar objects scattered throughout the universe. Together these companion pieces depict a person’s journey and the ups and downs that they experience. Many of these challenges and obstacles can feel consuming and overwhelming. Yet it is from these trials that a person can emerge stronger than before and accomplish objectives that they may have never been able to before.

View Full Project

Psyche Inspired is a program that brings undergraduate students from any discipline or major together to share the excitement, innovation, and scientific and engineering content of NASA’s Psyche mission with the public in new ways through artistic and creative works. This year’s Psyche Inspired cohort is known as the Iridium Class. These works are posted in the gallery and highlighted on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. View the full resolution images in the image gallery. There are many ways to get involved with NASA’s Psyche mission. Learn how you can be a part of the Psyche mission through our “Get Involved” pages at https://psyche.asu.edu/get-involved/ and https://science.nasa.gov/mission/psyche/ways-to-participate/. To learn more about the overall Psyche mission, visit nasa.gov/psyche or jpl.nasa.gov/missions/psyche.

Date Added: 02-03-2025
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/Brooke Flanagan

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