MUD
Model Urban Development
Natalie Jeremijenko designed Model Urban Development or MUD as part of an environmental project with OOZ Inc. Realizing that birds living in urban places don’t live the life of luxury as accustomed to by suburban birds, Natalie Jeremijenko decided to enhance the quality of life for city birds.
The Postmaster’s Gallery in the Chelsea section of New York City was the place for this experiment, and this piece of art. Natalie made a grid system on the roof of the building and “furnished” it with natural landscapes that a suburban bird might be accustomed to. The 1,000 square foot area is covered in grass, has bird houses, trees, and food and water supplies. The idea of the project is to give birds a higher quality of life in the city, and encourage cohabitation in the space. The project that Jeremijenko designed is a permanent work of art.
The experiment also allows researches to observe how the birds will adapt and interact with human engineered technologies. Jeremijenko also included some cultural experiences for the birds. They include a concert hall, shopping mall, and preferred foliage. I am not a bird expert by any means, but it sounds to me, like these pigeons are getting spoiled. Pigeons have a reputation for being tough city birds. I hate to start seeing them get soft over this experiment.
In the time lapse video on the project’s website, the bird population on the roof was constantly monitored, and showed a steady increase in bird population over the three day period. This is encouraging as it gives the impression that birds who have found this oasis in the city and are coming back. More importantly, they are coming back, and brining some friends with them. This encourages the cohabitation among birds, and will hopefully give safe homes, and a better quality of life to those birds that choose to continue to establish a residence there.
Aside from being an environmental experiment the roof top sanctuary is just another piece of art to view while visiting the Postmaster’s Gallery. A live feed is transmitted down to a TV screen below in the gallery with the other pieces of art that are currently being displayed. Although it may seem like gallery observers are at the zoo, this is not the case. They are watching the success of an environmental experiment.
