Cancun Underwater Museum in Mexico
Cancun Underwater Museum is more than 400 permanent
sculptures installed underwater as part of an artwork project "The Silent
Evolution" by artist Jason deCaires Taylor. It is a series of sculptures by
Jason deCaires Taylor placed underwater Cancun, Mexico. The project began in November 2009 with placement of a hundred
statues in shallow waters of the Cancun National Marine Park, which had been
previously damaged by storms.
The sculptures are created with pH-neutral marine
concrete and are made to resemble members of the local community. The artist
planned for the sculptures to become artificial reefs. Some corals such as fire
coral was planted on and near the initial sculptures. The statues themselves
however will also become covered with coral over time, due to the natural
propagation of corals already present in the vicinity.
The total museum installation occupies over 1,600 sq. feet (150 sq. meters) and weighs over 120 tons, and will one day form an artificial ecosystem where various fish and marine mammals will thrive.
The main body of the museum is called "The Silent
Evolution" and consists of 400 life-size figures molded in pH neutral
clay. The main goal of the museum is preservation, so the clay promotes marine
growth to form a complex structure inhabited and colonized by various forms of
marine life. Eventually coral reef will form on each sculpture, making them
change appearance over time.
Cancun Underwater Museum's pictures