IS ANYONE HERE A MARINE BIOLOGIST???-AHSA

 Back in 1928 one of the most famous Greek sculptures from 460 B.C. was discovered off the coast of Cape Artemisium. Today, it is preserved, all in one piece, and considered to be one of the top 10 recognizable sculptures of Ancient Greece. The 1974 discovery of the tomb of the First Emperor of China, houses the famous terracotta army of 8,000 soldiers each created with individual attributes in 210 B.C. Using space underground has served as a way of preserving and protecting history. The featured artist, Jason deCaires Taylor, is building for the future since 2006. he protects sea life by developing his own coral reef. He is taking the idea of putting sculpture in a fish tank to a whole new level. The artistic venture connects art with sea-life. His sculptures, modeled after individuals, or classical themes (still-life), are unpredictable as they are continuously abstracted, transformed, and developed by the marine life that inhabit the space. Jason preserves and protects for the future and constantly makes new installations of diverse portrayals of human life and activities. His cement sculptures, some weighing over 2,000 lbs connect art to the fragile, unrestrained, underwater environment. Jason’s works are expending and so far are in; Grenada,  Cancun (with 400+ sculptures), and Canterbury, UK. With more than 40% of the coral reefs being destroyed, one man, builds his own. 

An example of the works is The Archive of Lost Dreams depicting an underwater archive, maintained by a male registrar. The archive is a collection of hundreds of messages in bottles brought together by the natural forces of the ocean. The registrar is collating the individual bottles and categorizing the contents according to the nature of each message - fear, hope, loss, or belonging. Various communities from a broad spectrum of ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds have been invited to provide the messages, which, it is hoped, will document current values and aspirations for future generations to discover. The sculpture is placed within an area of the national marine park, which had been previously damaged, by hurricanes and tropical storms. The choice of location aims to draw the high number of visitors to the region away from other sections of pristine reef allowing them space to develop naturally.

http://www.underwatersculpture.com/index.asp

Preston Burchett