Janzen+Broeders take a new approach to interactive public intervention with an installation at the entrance to Fish Point Nature Preserve on Pelee Island—a place renowned for its annual butterfly migration.
For this project, the artists created one thousand die-cut butterflies from handmade seed paper, a material they produced collaboratively. Embedded with seeds selected to support butterfly habitat, each paper butterfly carries the potential to become something living. Together, the paper butterflies transform the installation from an object to an invitation: visitors are encouraged to take a butterfly as a gift and plant it in their own gardens.
The work responds to the decline of butterfly populations by creating a simple, tangible connection between art, participation, and ecological action. Rather than asking viewers only to observe, the installation invites them to become participants and caretakers—to carry a piece of the artwork beyond the preserve and into their own landscapes.
As the paper butterflies disperse from Fish Point into gardens and other growing spaces, the artwork continues to evolve. Each planted paper butterfly becomes part of a larger network of habitat, connecting individual acts of care to the broader movement of migrating species.
Through this gesture of giving, Janzen+Broeders considers how public art can extend beyond a physical site and become an act of environmental stewardship. The thousand butterflies are not meant to remain together. Their purpose is to leave—to be planted, to grow, and to create the conditions that may welcome butterflies back.