Live HealthSmart Alabama, an initiative of the University of Alabama at Birmingham facilitated by the UAB Minority Health & Health Equity Research Center, has recently completed the first of what will be 11 murals in stairwells across the university.

The Stairway to Wellness project is part of a larger plan for Live HealthSmart Alabama to implement its signature keys—physical activity, good nutrition, education, and prevention and wellness—across campus. As one of UAB’s Health Promoting University initiatives, Live HealthSmart Alabama is facilitating improvements and cultivating a culture of health and well-being.

To work toward this goal, a committee focusing on each LHSA key was established. For the past year, the physical activity committee—co-chaired by Michele Gould, MPH, and Holly Wyatt, M.D.—has been working to identify locations, select artists, and establish a process for installing the Stairway to Health murals.

“The environment can have a big impact on behavior. When you change your environment, you change your behavior without even knowing it,” explained Wyatt, professor in the Department of Nutrition Sciences. “I think we’ve wired our environment to decrease our activity.”

“The question I’ve thought a lot about is ‘Can we rewire our environment to increase physical activity?’” added Wyatt.

Selected to pilot the Stairway to Wellness initiative, and help answer Wyatt’s question, is UAB’s Susan Mott Webb Nutrition Sciences Building. “We are excited to be the first building on campus that uses art in stairwells to encourage physical activity. I urge other leaders to join us in creating a healthier campus for our students,” says James Hill, Ph.D., professor, and director of UAB’s Nutrition Obesity Research Center.

The Artists

Students in Webb can now find two murals painted within the building’s stairwells. The first, “Joyful Movement,” was painted by one of Wyatt’s Wellbeing and You students, Addy Bias.

“The ‘Joyful Movement’ mural shows people that while everybody moves differently, it’s important that we celebrate what we can do. Well-being is about embracing what you have, not what’s lacking,” described Wyatt. 

The second mural, “A Spot in the Sun,” was created by Clinical Research Coordinator in the Department of Nutrition Science, Emily Pounds. The mural, which depicts a sunflower, provides an uplifting sense of emotion and positivity to passersby.

What's Next

“Throughout this process, we’ve learned so much about what it takes to complete a project of this scope,” stated Gould. “Holly and I received an amazing amount of support from so many people, including Dr. Jim Hill and our interim chair of the Department of Nutrition Sciences, Dr. Barbara Gower, as we navigated the approval process. Now, we have a roadmap for implementing murals in the other 11 buildings.”

While the group has yet to decide which building is next, there are several—such as the School of Nursing, Administration Building, Gold Residence Hall, and Campbell Hall—under consideration.

Those interested in creating a mural on campus should reach out to Holly Wyatt at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..