Birdland

The Idea

Birdland is an interactive installation for young children and their families. It is inspired by The Mulberry Bird, a children’s book about adoption written by Dr. Anne Brodzinsky. In this “narrative playscape”, kids can make birds and fly them through a forest filled with nests connected by zip lines. The Mulberry Bird story is woven throughout. Birdland integrates art making, movement, and storytelling to help children and their families explore a central idea in adoption and foster care: children are always connected to more than one family.  It is meant for everyone, people with and without an adoption or foster care experience.

Project Development

By the end of 2014, we completed design work on the forest of trees, prototyped birds and zip lines and defined other parts of the project such as methods for visitors to contribute to the installation, a reading nest and take-away resources. We paused work in order to focus on completing the Operation Babylift: Perspectives and Legacies exhibition.

The People Behind Birdland

Birdland has been inspired, developed and supported by a community of artists, makers and thinkers including: Sagit Betser, Dr. Anne Brodzinsky, Albert Golbert, Rachel Knudson and Sticky Art Lab, Hiphung Lam, Pollyanna Lee, Terri Lambert, Corrie Messinger, Margaret Middleton, Monica Perrone, Rik Ritchey and Maisee Xiong.

Next Steps

When we have resources and a partner who would like to host the installation, we will determine when to complete development and install Birdland for the first time.

Want to help?

If you would like to help us finish Birdland and present it to the public, please contact us: info@adoptionmuseumproject.org.