Visitors Dive Among Conservation-Inspired Submerged Art at New Great Barrier Reef Sculpture Exhibit

For nearly twenty years, British eco-sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor has crafted captivating underwater art worlds that raise awareness about our endangered oceans and promote life regeneration. His submerged museums, which serve as artificial reefs, can be found in various locations worldwide, including Mexico, France, and Indonesia. The artist's latest creations are being revealed in one of nature's most awe-inspiring and delicate environments: the Great Barrier Reef.

Ocean Sentinels is the newest installation by the artist at the Museum of Underwater Art (MOUA), situated in the heart of Australia's Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. MOUA, featuring large-scale underwater exhibits all crafted by deCaires Taylor, opened its doors in 2020 to unite art, conservation, science, and tourism.

Though his sculptures reside on the ocean floor instead of a terrestrial gallery, the sculptor emphasizes the significance of referring to these spaces as museums: "Museums are dedicated to conservation, education, and the safeguarding of sacred places. We must extend those values to our oceans."

His latest series of hybrid-human figure sculptures pays tribute to the marine scientists, conservationists, and Indigenous communities that safeguard the Great Barrier Reef—these are the reef’s “ocean sentinels.” This collection officially debuts on World Oceans Day, June 8, 2023, and can be explored through snorkeling or diving at MOUA near Townsville, Queensland.

Each Ocean Sentinel sculpture merges human form with natural marine elements like corals and shells, reflecting the individual’s area of expertise. True to deCaires Taylor’s mission, these underwater artworks not only highlight the fragility of our oceans and reefs but also create new refuges for coral regeneration and thriving marine life.

"I hope it [Ocean Sentinels] will... connect people with some of the world’s foremost marine biologists and their research," deCaires Taylor shares with Dinogo.

Positioned between 13 to 20 feet deep, the sculptures are accessible to snorkelers and crafted from a low-carbon, eco-friendly concrete—marine-grade cement that is pH neutral and free of harmful pollutants, designed to encourage coral growth. Towering over seven feet and weighing three tons, the eight sculptures were strategically placed in barren sandbanks to redirect snorkelers and divers from more delicate nearby reefs.

As time passes, the sculptures will be inhabited by marine life, evolving into sanctuaries for new ecosystems. "I visited the sculptures three days after installation, and already they had a thin layer of algae attracting fish, along with a few sea cucumbers and starfish," reports deCaires Taylor, noting that he anticipates juvenile corals and sponges will appear within six months.

Snorkelers and divers can explore Ocean Sentinels at John Brewer Reef, where the eco-artist’s other installation, The Coral Greenhouse, is also found, forming an underwater sculpture trail. This marks the artist’s first underwater building, a 137-ton structure featuring 20 hyper-realistic human figures tending to coral gardens. The figures are modeled after local youth; the eco-sculptor often chooses young individuals as he believes the future of the planet lies in their hands. A recent fish survey indicates a 400 percent increase in species diversity and a 500 percent boost in abundance since its 2019 installation. The first MOUA installation was Ocean Siren, a 13-foot-tall statue modeled after Takoda Johnson, a young Indigenous girl, which changes color in real time as ocean temperatures rise, acting as a warning beacon visible from the shore.

The protectors of the Great Barrier Reef

According to deCaires Taylor, the Townsville region, home to James Cook University and the Australian Institute of Marine Science, is at the forefront of marine biology. The Ocean Sentinels underwater sculpture trail at John Brewer Reef aims to provide an inspiring and educational introduction to the Great Barrier Reef.

“It’s a living work of art that conveys the significance of research, the importance of coral reefs, and how art, science, and humanity can unite to safeguard the reef,” says Dr. Katharina Fabricius, one of the Ocean Sentinel muses and a leading coral reef ecologist in the area, in a statement to Australia Broadcasting Corp. (ABC) News.

A key part of MOUA’s mission is to highlight the Indigenous connection to and responsibility for safeguarding the Great Barrier Reef. Representing the future of Indigenous leadership is Jayme Marshall, a Wulgurukaba and Yunbenen woman recognized as an Ocean Sentinel. In tribute to Australia’s traditional custodians, deCaires Taylor’s artwork intertwines Marshall with roots from a cathedral fig tree and mangrove.

MOUA actively collaborates with local Indigenous cultures, featuring a Manbarra traditional owner on its board and offering a training program that certifies local Indigenous community members as dive guides for MOUA.

Art that motivates change

The greatest threat to the Great Barrier Reef and reefs worldwide is the rise in sea temperatures caused by global warming. As the largest living structure on the planet, the reef plays a crucial role in combating climate change, acting as one of the biggest carbon sinks globally; its seagrass and mangrove forests sequester 111 million tons of carbon. With four mass coral bleaching events in recent years, preserving the reef is essential.

The eco-artist’s work highlights the climate emergency through art installations that challenge our connection to the Earth. DeCaires Taylor believes that art is vital in helping people “feel the science” when statistics and headlines fall short. His sculptures often represent the local community, raising awareness about warming seas, environmental activism, and nature's resilience.

“Art and science are essential allies in the fight against climate change,” deCaires Taylor states. “We are emotional beings, and as history has shown, we need to believe and feel something to inspire action.”

As a passionate scuba diver, deCaires Taylor witnessed the global decline of corals, prompting him to embark on a mission to work in harmony with nature by designing sculptures that serve as artificial, living, and evolving reefs. In 2006, he established the world’s first underwater sculpture park in Grenada, and now boasts over 1,100 underwater living artworks worldwide, including a pioneering underwater forest that debuted in 2021 at Cyprus’s Museum of Underwater Sculpture Ayia Napa.

“We urgently need to transform our relationship with the natural world and recognize our deep connection to it,” deCaires Taylor states. “I hope my work serves as a reminder that we are part of nature; our fate is intrinsically linked to the ecosystem.”

How to visit: Reserve a tour with approved operators at the Museum of Underwater, engage in citizen science initiatives like recording your observations on iNaturalist, and combat climate change while protecting the Great Barrier Reef by making simple everyday changes.