Perhaps no shape is more closely connected to UW–Madison than the sunburst pattern on the back of the chairs on Memorial Union’s Terrace. But the chairs are hardly a Terrace original. The first “Terrace chairs” were slatted seats made of hickory wood. The Union ordered its first metal chairs in 1931, but buyers couldn’t decide between the sunburst chairs and similar-looking Deauville chairs (which had more convex seats and backs). The Deauvilles tended to trap water, causing rust, and so the Union stopped ordering them in the 1960s. Today only the sunbursts remain. Their colors honor Wisconsin’s agricultural traditions: John Deere Green, Allis-Chalmers orange, and sunshine yellow. Typically, between 60 and 70 Terrace chairs are “liberated” by patrons each year, often ending up in student apartments or the homes of alumni.

The art for the Badger Pride Wall was created for WAA by Madison illustrator Nate Koehler.