Vision Project · Proposal Submitted

Moss
& Light

A multi-sensory biophilic installation where preserved moss, programmable light, and curated sound respond to the living world outside.

Biophilic Installation Environmental Design University of Michigan
Proposal Submitted — Awaiting Response from University of Michigan
Project Type Biophilic Sensory Installation
Proposed Location Weiser Hall, University of Michigan
Status Proposal Submitted · Under Review
Harmonic Studios Role Concept, Design & Environmental Strategy
The Concept

A space that feels alive
because
it is.

Moss & Light is a permanent installation that brings the outside in — not as decoration, but as a real sensory environment. Preserved and living moss panels. Programmable light that tracks the actual sky. Sound pulled from real field recordings. All of it shifting together in response to what the weather is doing outside, right now.

When it rains outside, the light inside softens. The sound shifts. When it’s clear, the space opens up. You’re indoors, but you feel the world outside anyway — without a window in sight.

The research is real — environmental psychology, biophilic design, decades of studies on what nature-integrated spaces do to the people inside them. Less cortisol. More focus. More time spent in the space voluntarily. This isn’t a plant wall. It’s a room that works.

Organic moss reference — the natural world this installation draws from
Where It Came From

The natural world
doesn’t belong
outside our buildings.

The idea started with a simple observation: every space people find genuinely restorative shares the same qualities. Layered texture. Diffused light. Sound that shifts without a pattern you can track. The smell of something living. None of that is exclusive to the outdoors. It can be designed.

The research on this is consistent: biophilic environments lower stress, improve focus, and increase how long people stay in a space voluntarily. For a university — where students and faculty carry sustained cognitive pressure as a baseline — a space that actively works against that pressure isn’t a luxury. It’s a practical decision.

Moss & Light was designed to be that space. Not a plant wall. Not a lobby feature. A room that does something.

The Installation

Four systems working
as one environment.

01

Preserved Moss Panels

Floor-to-ceiling panels of preserved and living moss varieties, selected for texture, color variation, and sensory depth. No irrigation required. Maintained to remain visually rich over time.

02

Programmable Lighting

A tunable lighting system that mirrors the color temperature and intensity of natural daylight in real time. Light shifts gradually across the day — morning warmth, midday clarity, late afternoon softness.

03

Curated Soundscapes

Ambient audio drawn from actual field recordings — wind, water, forest, rain — mixed and layered to support focus and rest without drawing attention to itself. The sound is present without being noticed.

04

Environmental Response

The installation connects to a real-time weather feed. When conditions outside shift, the environment inside shifts in kind — creating a living relationship between the occupant, the space, and the world beyond the building.

Concept Imagery

The vision,
made visible.

Concept renders & design sketches
Moss & Light installation render
Concept sketch 1
Concept sketch 2
Concept sketch 3
Concept sketch 4
Moss & Light concept proposal document
The Proposal

Built for a
committee, not
a conversation.

The proposal submitted to the University of Michigan was designed to communicate the concept clearly to a committee with diverse backgrounds — facilities, academic leadership, student affairs, and design review. Every section was built to answer the questions a decision-making group actually asks: What is it? How does it work? What does it cost to maintain? What does the research say?

The document covers the environmental psychology research foundation, the four installation systems, maintenance requirements, material specifications, and the reasoning behind Weiser Hall as the right location for this kind of space on campus.

“A space that feels calm isn’t an accident. It’s the result of specific decisions about light, texture, sound, and material — decisions that most buildings never make. Moss & Light makes them deliberately.”
Harmonic Studios’ Role

From research
to rendered
environment.

Moss & Light represents the intersection of everything Harmonic Studios does — environmental psychology research, spatial design, sensory calibration, and the ability to make a complex idea visible and communicable to the people who need to approve it. The concept was developed, designed, documented, and submitted entirely by Harmonic Studios as a self-initiated project.

This project demonstrates Harmonic Studios’ capacity to work at the intersection of science, design, and built environment — and to bring that thinking to institutional clients with exacting standards.

Environmental Psychology Research
Biophilic Design
Concept Development
Spatial Design
Sensory Systems Planning
Proposal Writing
3D Visualization
Institutional Presentation
Environmental Design & Consultation

Have a space that
deserves more than it has?

Whether it’s a lobby, a studio, a classroom, or a home — we’d love to talk through what it could become.

Book a Discovery Conversation