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 says. “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.
Read the complete news story in The University Record.
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