I used the psychedelic aesthetic for my upcycle project, and I am interested in exploring it further. I am planning to go to a music festival this summer that uses a similar theme, and I would like to make a piece to bring with me.

There is an artifact known as a Totem that many people brings to music festivals. A totem is generally an art piece that is fastened to the top of a long pole, that is carried around at festivals. Totems have the added function of helping groups of people stay together among the many thousands of other festival-goers as they move between stages.

Here are a few examples:

I enjoy watching a TV show known as “Rick and Morty.” One of the main characters, Rick, is a mad genius who takes his grandson, Morty, with him on adventures across universes, dimensions, and even time. I would like to make a totem with a plushie Rick at the top that is decorated in LEDs. I would also like to make the LEDs on Rick respond dynamically to sound, however, I am not sure that I will have enough time to complete that portion of the project by the due date.

Below is an image of a scene from “Rick and Morty”:

I began by searching online for Rick plushies. While I found various “Rick and Morty” characters, including a Rick head plushie, on a website, Etsy, I could not find an artifact for my totem that I considered suitable. I have begun working on making my own.

Below is an image of the head I made for my Rick plushie:

I am expecting the entire Rick plushie from head to toe will be around 2.5 – 3 ft. I am planning to use two 16 LED neopixel rings that I am going to place behind some glasses for Rick. I am also planning to use around 150 other LEDs, taken from an addressable LED strip, fastened all around his body and clothing. Since the festival is around 12 hours long overnight, I am planning optimize Rick’s LEDs to be able to function on battery power for that amount of time.

References (In order of appearance):

• 1st Totem Image: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjt0s3UzrTSAhUU3WMKHXvfA8gQjRwIBw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.com%2Fpin%2F524458319087924968%2F&bvm=bv.148441817,d.cGc&psig=AFQjCNHAwi7BS4JjZ1fA3YHLOhh-ewwwBw&ust=1488433920182711
• 2nd Totem Image: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwj5g8nwzrTSAhVBWWMKHUW5AksQjRwIBw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.notey.com%2Fblogs%2Fedm-totems&bvm=bv.148441817,d.cGc&psig=AFQjCNHAwi7BS4JjZ1fA3YHLOhh-ewwwBw&ust=1488433920182711
• 3rd Totem Image: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwj9qeOZz7TSAhUM22MKHUsNDYsQjRwIBw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thatdrop.com%2Fcategory%2Fedm-community%2Ffunny-totems%2F&bvm=bv.148441817,d.cGc&psig=AFQjCNHAwi7BS4JjZ1fA3YHLOhh-ewwwBw&ust=1488433920182711
• 4th Totem Image: https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fedmsauce.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2014%2F06%2FStick4.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.edmsauce.com%2F2014%2F06%2F02%2Fshow-us-custom-made-totemsrave-sticks%2F&docid=WfzP41FgKATueM&tbnid=8WeB7rYUFrHRLM%3A&vet=1&w=480&h=694&bih=756&biw=1309&q=edm%20totems&ved=0ahUKEwi3_uTJzrTSAhUC8GMKHTUODf8QMwh6KEcwRw&iact=mrc&uact=8
• Rick and Morty Scene Image: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiL68-_0rTSAhVY8mMKHd9hCgYQjRwIBw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.inverse.com%2Farticle%2F26880-why-is-rick-and-morty-season-3-delayed-update-premiere-date-dan-harmon-fighting-justin-roiland-adult-swim&bvm=bv.148441817,d.cGc&psig=AFQjCNGjaqGBcyHBVe5xD56AIeUNqzPvuw&ust=1488434955508762
• Rick Head Plushie Image: My Own