"Psycho-Trope: The Im-mediate Sensorium,'' at the University of Michigan Jean Paul Slusser Gallery, invites its audience "to speculate on altered mental and physical states.''

The artworks in the exhibit - two installations and smaller assemblage - were created by students of U-M School of Art and Design professor Satoru Takahashi. According to the show's gallery statement, the works "are designed to cleanse both body and spirit, while producing a place for 'meditation and mediation' that may foster discussion.''

Some of the works in "Psycho-Trope'' were created in fall 2005 as part of an advanced sculpture studio taught by Takahashi. These works are supposed to investigate the relationship between "emotional change and body movement.''
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As such, many of the works in the exhibit are also associated with "The Stairwell Project'' being crafted for installation at the U-M School of Public Health. These works were crafted in a fall 2006 course entitled, "Metal Ecology.''

Among the highlights of "The Stairwell Project'' are "Forest'' and "Sky.'' "Forest,'' crafted by Miche Nagai and Mijung Park, is a back-lit four-panel artwork whose individual plates reflect the seasons of the year. The first panel, winter, is an accumulation of blue and white leaves. Spring's flowers reflect the renewal of nature. Summer's green leaves and plants represent the year's warmth. And fall's red maple leaves pave the way towards the chilly season ahead.

"Sky,'' on the other hand, is a large orb representing the moon with hundreds of keys pegged on key holders that create surface detail. Crafted by Edward Gray, Ashley Krieger, Edward Mann, and Danielle Massell, "Sky's'' simple, yet powerful appearance makes it masterly installation art.

Also of interest in "Psycho-Trope,'' is the second installation, "Studio No. 6,'' created by Adrianne Finelli, which looks everything like a beauty parlor on a life-size scale. Finelli's pink-hued "studio'' has got everything intact right down to the appointment book and combs. And Chadwick Gibson's "Speed of Judgment'' is an installation that features wood, steel, and mirrors to good effect as an artful guillotine. Indeed, a video monitor showing "Speed of Judgment'' at play is impressive in its own right.