A student-designed bird-friendly window mural will soon transform the elevated walkway connecting Weiser Hall and the North University Building, part of a broader effort to reduce bird collisions and support biodiversity at the University of Michigan.
Suher Salim, an undergraduate student studying cognitive science in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, created the winning design, which features birds, butterflies and botanical elements woven through an intricate black-and-white pattern. The design will be installed in white film across the glass walkway, helping birds recognize the glass as a barrier.
"The inspiration for the design came from everyday nature I encountered while walking in Ann Arbor. I wanted to specifically feature native plants to bring awareness on campus. As an artist, it is really surreal to have an art installation on the U-M campus," Salim said. "I believe we must learn to coexist with nature, because we are also a part of it."
Salim also holds an associate's degree in graphic design from Oakland Community College and said that training helped her plan a design that could work as a large-scale installation.
The winning design was selected through a campuswide competition launched earlier this year as part of U-M's Bird Protection Program. Funded through Student Life's Planet Blue Student Innovation Fund, the competition invited students to create an original mural-style decal that met bird-friendly design standards while adding artwork to the campus landscape.
The competition was hosted by the Office of Campus Sustainability and Innovation in partnership with the Arts Initiative and the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. A jury reviewed the submissions and selected Salim's design.
"This project demonstrates how sustainability at U-M can connect research, creativity and campus operations in meaningful ways," said Anya Dale, manager of Campus as Lab in the Office of Campus Sustainability and Innovation. "Students helped translate bird-collision research into a practical solution that will help protect wildlife while creating a more engaging campus environment."
Building collisions are the second-leading source of direct human-caused bird mortality in the United States, killing an estimated 1 billion birds annually. Most collisions occur when birds mistake reflections in glass for open sky or habitat.
The elevated walkway between Weiser Hall and the North University Building was identified as a higher-risk location through seasonal bird-collision monitoring conducted in partnership with researchers and faculty at the Museum of Zoology.
Staff and student volunteers conduct the monitoring during spring and fall migration, recording collisions to help identify locations where window treatments may be needed.
"This project celebrates student-created art in a really exciting way," said Adrienne Frank, program specialist for student engagement in the Arts Initiative. " It shows how we can utilize the arts to work in an interdisciplinary manner to address real challenges on our campus, all while celebrating the work of an amazing student artist, and creating a platform for her artwork to be shared with the U-M community."
The campus community can see the completed mural and meet the student artist at an unveiling event from 1-3 p.m. Sept. 11 on the 10th floor of Weiser Hall. The event also will feature campus wildlife trivia, crafts and information about efforts to protect birds and biodiversity on campus.
"LSA community members have long advocated for practical steps we can take to be better neighbors to year-round and migrating birds," said Caitlin Jacobs, sustainability manager for the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. "We're grateful for the opportunity to host this project on an LSA facility and look forward to building on additional biodiversity initiatives in the future."
Funding for the project came from the Planet Blue Student Initiative Fund. The effort is part of U-M's broader Campus as Lab work, which uses campus spaces and infrastructure to test ideas, apply research and address real-world challenges.
