The Birdwatcher (2026)
The Birdwatcher (2026)
Artist: Angi Cooper
Medium: Paint on Concrete
Location: Kimbrough Greenway Trailhead , 8108 Wolf River Blvd, Germantown, TN 38138
Description:
The Birdwatcher mural features a birdwatcher on the left side and a collection of birds on the right side of the Riverwood Pedestrian Tunnel south entrance.
The birder uses her binoculars to view migratory and year-round resident birds along the greenway in the spring when the red-flowering buckeye is in bloom. She views the birds with the sun behind her so they show up more clearly in her binoculars.
The two circles on the bird wall symbolize the two lenses of the binoculars. Larger birds appear higher in the sky and farther away in the smaller top circle while the song birds in the bottom circle appear larger being closer, perhaps, to the viewer as they perch or fly.
The birds shown are just a fraction of the species I’ve heard and seen while birding on the Germantown Greenline. They include: White-eyed vireo, Brown thrasher, male and female Northern cardinals, male and female Indigo buntings, American goldfinch, Northern parula, Carolina chickadee, Pileated woodpecker, Mississippi kite, and Red-shouldered hawk.
Mural funded by a Creative Placemaking grant from the TN Arts Commission
Artist: Angi Cooper
Angi Cooper is a Memphis-based artist with a B.F.A. in graphic design from the University of Memphis. A professional mixed media artist and certified Teaching Artist, she is recognized by the Mississippi Arts Council for her arts-integrated residencies. She conducts workshops in disciplines ranging from printmaking and bookmaking to mural design.
Her work, which has been featured in publications such as The Commercial Appeal and Cat Fancy Magazine, is held in private and public collections. Notable public art installations include a 265-foot nature-themed mural in Texarkana, TX, collaborative student murals in Arkansas and Mississippi, and large-scale installations at the Children’s Museum of Memphis and the MAX Museum.
Angi’s creative practice is deeply rooted in her life as a naturalist, hiker, and birding enthusiast. Often exploring trails with binoculars and camera in hand, she documents her experiences through a series of zines based on her bird "life list"—often keeping an eye out for her favorite, the Wood Thrush.
