Christina Lin’s Portfolio
PHOTO STORIES
Story on Holly Greenberg, local artist and founder of the Bird Collisions in the Anthropocene project, for The Daily Northwestern’s multimedia features project, Open for Business.
Click here to view the full story.
Holly Greenberg founded the Bird Collisions in the Anthropocene art project in 2023. She relocated the project from Syracuse, New York to Evanston in fall 2023. Now, her studio sits on Greenleaf Street in the West Village business district.
The project aims to create replicas of the 10,836 birds killed by window strikes in Chicago in 2023. The birds are made through crowdsourcing, and the project has produced between 3,000 and 4,000 birds as of May 2025.
Each bird is made from donated fabric, such as used bed sheets and pillow stuffing.
Greenberg says people can implement easy fixes to prevent window strikes. Some methods she suggests are making Acopian Birdsavers, using window collision tape or marking windows with a paint pen.
The windows of the store feature art created by artist Taro Takizawa. The piece, created using hand-cut vinyl, also serves as a bird collision prevention method.
Greenberg says she loves her studio but will have to move into a bigger space once they move on to the next step of the project, which she predicts will happen in two years.
Each bird replica features a label that not only displays the deceased bird’s species name and when it died, but also the location and date the replica was created. Some information about the bird’s artist is also shown, such as their name and where they are from.
After each bird is created, Greenberg types out the information into a digital database and writes it down in a ledger.
Best of Evanston: Secret Treasures Antiques & Collectibles invites patrons to enjoy ‘the thrill of the hunt’
View published story here.
Secret Treasures Antiques & Collectibles sits on Dempster Street and offers reasonably priced antiques. The store has been in Evanston for over 32 years.
Before opening the store, Dawn Okamoto spent her weekends and leisure time at flea markets, estate sales and auctions. Then she decided to turn her passion for antiques into her job. “Part of what I loved was the thrill of the hunt and finding things for a bargain,” Okamoto said, “so I wanted to pass that on as part of my business model.”
The shop is filled to the brim with various antiques, collectibles and trinkets. Over the years, Okamoto has changed the items in her shop in response to what customers want. “Things can be super hot and in demand, and two years later, nobody wants it anymore,” Okamoto said. “So we have to figure out our inventory, how to pivot and make sure we always have the things that people want.”
When Okamoto first opened the store, she mostly operated independently with some help from her mother. Then she hired her first employee. “That was a big decision to bring on one person,” Okamoto said. Currently, Okamoto employs seven people, including Director of Operations Henry James and Lead Sales and Staff Leader Melanie Chorba.
James and Chorba move various antiques outside the store for display. Chorba first came into Secret Treasures with her mother, who was a big fan of the store. She said that the store creates relationships with customers – remembering people’s names and being consistent with service. “It really does cultivate a family atmosphere here because you feel remembered,” Chorba said. “You feel valued as a customer and as an employee.”
James first started working at the store almost 13 years ago. Now, he lives in Bolingbrook, Ill., but still makes the long commute to Evanston for work. He says that the vibe at the store and Okamoto keep him there. “Everyone’s allowed to be themselves, and you can be creative all day,” James said. “You meet a lot of cool people.”
Okamoto says that every day is enjoyable for her. “You get through the peaks and valleys because you still enjoy it,” Okamoto said. “That’s really what keeps us going.”
PHOTO WORK
Featured on the NCAA Women’s Basketball Instagram as one of the photos of the week
