Psyche Inspired: Mitchel Medvec

Institution: University of Minnesota Twin Cities

Major: Astrophysics and Mechanical Engineering

Psyche Inspired Class: 2020-2021

Reflections on Psyche Inspired

Reflections on Project 1: Breathless

Breathless

Mitchel Medvec

November 12, 2020

Major: Astrophysics and Mechanical Engineering

Genre/Medium: music recording and producing software

About the work: “Breathless” is an instrumental piece that captures the incredible intricacies of the Psyche mission and the mysteriousness of space and the Psyche asteroid. The piece starts off with a violin solo and vocals to represent the launch and the beginning of the journey for the Psyche spacecraft. Next, drums start to play, representing the incredible power of the rocket boosters. The piece then builds up to a brief “breathless” moment when the spacecraft reaches space and starts to float. The drums and other instruments then come back in to represent the spacecraft heading towards the asteroid in the depths of space. “Breathless” finally comes to an end with a call and response between an electric guitar, representing the sharpness of the Psyche spacecraft, and the trumpets/violins, representing the incredible vastness of the Psyche asteroid.

Reflections on Project 2: Psyche Logo Mosaic

White, orange, pink, and purple ceramic tiles arranged in the shape of the Psyche logo with white grout finish and silver spray-painted wooden "Psyche" letters.

Psyche Logo Mosaic

Mitchel Medvec

December 29, 2020

Major: Astrophysics and Mechanical Engineering

Genre/Medium: ceramic tile, wood, white grout, spray paint, and wooden letters

About the work: The Psyche Logo Mosaic is a multimedia mosaic, inspired by the Psyche logo. The intention for this piece was to create an abstract, spin-off of the logo. The materials used in this project were ceramic tile, white grout, wood, and spray paint. For the letters “Psyche”, pieces of wood were sprayed with copper and nickel metallic spray paint to make the letters look like they were taken from the asteroid.

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Reflections on Project 3:
Satellite Approaching Psyche | Approaching The Asteroid

 

This piece is a multimedia painting of the Psyche spacecraft as it approaches the Psyche asteroid. The background is made up of many different colors of acrylic paint splattered on to a wooden canvas. The spacecraft is made up of styrofoam and metal wire, and it is decorated with different metallic paints.

Satellite Approaching Psyche

Mitchel Medvec

March 1, 2021

Major: Astrophysics and Mechanical Engineering

Genre/Medium: acrylic paint, tile, styrofoam, metal wire, electrical tape, silicone, duct tape, wooden canvas

About the work: This piece is a multimedia painting of the Psyche spacecraft as it approaches the Psyche asteroid. The background is made up of many different colors of acrylic paint splattered onto a wooden canvas. It is an abstract way to represent the entropy in space. The spacecraft is made up of styrofoam and metal wire, and it is decorated with different metallic paints. This piece is a multimedia painting of the Psyche spacecraft as it approaches the Psyche asteroid. The background is made up of many different colors of acrylic paint splattered onto a wooden canvas. It is an abstract way to represent the entropy in space. The spacecraft is made up of styrofoam and metal wire, and it is decorated with different metallic paints.

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A mosaic showcasing the Psyche spacecraft approaching the Psyche asteroid.

Approaching the Asteroid

Mitchel Medvec

March 24, 2021

Major: Astrophysics and Mechanical Engineering

Genre/Medium: Multimedia Mosaic Materials Used: Ceramic Tile, Metallic Paint, Copper Wire, Grout, Silicon, Wood, Concrete, Styrofoam, Tin Foil

About the work: This project is a multimedia mosaic of the Psyche spacecraft approaching the asteroid. The hardest part of this project was fitting pieces of tile on a board of that scale. A 6 x 6 wooden board was used as a canvas, which is very big considering I was using tiles about a square inch in size. The asteroid was shaped using styrofoam. A thin layer of concrete was then poured onto the styrofoam and painted to appear metallic. The spacecraft was made using tile, tin foil, and copper wire.

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Reflections on Project 4: Psyche Rice Throw Art

Psyche Rice Throw Art

Mitchel Medvec

June 3, 2021

Major: Astrophysics and Mechanical Engineering

Genre/Medium: food coloring, vinegar, rice

About the work: This project was made using over 3 pounds of rice, vinegar, food coloring, and a lot of patience. It took many hours and 3 tries to make the rice actually look like the Psyche asteroid when it was thrown in the air. The project was frustrating at times, but I am very happy with how it turned out.

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Ascension

Mitchel Medvec

July 7, 2021

Major: Astrophysics and Mechanical Engineering

Genre/Medium: Music (Guitar, Piano, Violin, Recording and Producing Software, Mavic Mini Drone, Drums, Nikon D7500 Camera)

About the work: “Ascension” is a musical piece that captures the future launch of the Psyche spacecraft, which is scheduled for August 2022. It starts off with audio from one of the Apollo launches, which foreshadows what mission control will sound like when the launch happens. Guitar, piano, violin, drums, and various electronic sounds are used to paint a picture of what the launch might sound and look like. The video is simply for dramatic effect and for fun! I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it!

The Psyche badge with no words on it.

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