Veolia North America mural highlights native plants and fish

In a recent project through the Lubar Innovation Center at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD), three students worked with Veolia North America to research, concept and install a mural of native plants and fish.

Located at the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District’s South Shore Water Reclamation Facility, the vibrant mural depicts “themes of conservation and the native wildlife around Milwaukee and Lake Michigan,” explains Kate Kasper ’27. Under the guidance of Abrahm Guthrie, who acted as the faculty project manager, Kasper worked with Nolan Wollmer ’26 and Emily Camp ’26 to design and paint the mural.

“Abrahm I think of as our fearless leader, always there to help and guide but able to let us figure things out on our own when necessary,” says Wollmer.

“Over the course of a few weeks we sketched concepts [and] refined our designs down to final products,” explains Kasper. After meetings with Veolia and MMSD, Kasper’s finalized design was projected to scale onto the mural site, then outlined. In under two weeks, the students worked three to six hours a day painting to complete the mural.

“This was my first project with the Innovation Center, [and] I hope won’t be my last either,” says Wollmer. Camp felt the same, saying: “This was my first time working through the Innovation Center and I really enjoyed the collaboration! I think the support of networking with students to get them into their industries is very thoughtful and smart and I hope to work with them again!”

Kasper reflects, “Working with the Innovation Center has given me priceless experience with the world of professional design and illustration … Even if I’m not actively working on a project, I find myself in the Innovation Center quite often because I can always go there for helpful advice and critique. I can’t recommend working with them enough, whether it’s a professional or personal project.”

The Lubar Innovation Center connects real-world clients with MIAD students to work on paid professional projects.

Learn more about the Lubar Innovation Center!