Live in Color (LINC) is a student-run not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving the University of Michigan’s campus environment through carefully designed and brightly colored murals and art. We are interested in creating a new series of mural installations across U-M’s campus over the coming year. We have been in operation since fall of 2017 and have painted 8 murals across campus, in addition to two off-campus murals at the Argus Farm Stop. Using well-established color psychology, Live in Color seeks to bring colorful pieces into old and new university buildings — bringing life into spaces whose blank walls currently generate negative environments. Through our pillars of Community, Creativity, and Atmosphere, we are dedicated to improving campus environment, while creating an interdisciplinary experience in which a diverse group of people can express themselves creatively and build a community around art and design.
A project grant from the BLI allowed us to expand our mural painting to paint a number of stairwells in the MLB, as well as paint other locations on campus including the UGLi, the Duderstadt Center on North Campus, with plans to continue painting in Weiser Hall, Angell/Mason Hall, and more.
Some of the key BLI habits we incorporated were Value Difference, Work to Learn, and Engage the World. With over 100 students involved in design and painting, a number of ideas and designs are incorporated into our work. After each painting, we collect feedback from members and the UM community at large to see what worked well, how we might improve our designs, and where we should paint next. We had to engage university administration stakeholders, including campus building managers, in order to create partnerships and get permission to paint campus facilities, along with obtaining approval for the design. The support of the BLI was integral in ensuring that LINC could continue its work brightening and beautifying campus spaces all across the University of Michigan.
By: Ethan Hopper
