MUSA, El Museo subaquàtico de Arte

MUSA El Museo subaquàtico de Arte (The Museum of Underwater Art) an underwater art museum inaugurated on 27 November 2010^[1] in the Caribbean Sea off the Eastern state of Quintana Roo, Cancun, Mexico.^[2] It is the largest collection of underwater contemporary sculpture worldwide with the main gallery consisting of over 400 life sized cement sculptures,^[3] created by British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor. At the invitation of CONANP National Commission of Protected Natural Areas (Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas),^[4] Taylor and his team began the project in Mexico in August 2009 to which he is now the Artistic Director^[5] of the new Cancun Underwater Museum located in The National Marine Park of Cancun, Punta Nizuc, Punta Cancun^[6] and Isla Mujeres.^[7] Taylor was also the initiator of the World’s First Underwater Sculpture Park in Grenada, the West Indies in 2006.^[8]

History

Cancun National Marine Park is visited by an estimated 750,000 tourists per year of which 450,000 visit Punta Nizuc, which is an area of just 4 hectares.^[9] The Eco-art installations^[10] have been designed in an attempt to combat the desecration caused to the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System^[11] from years of hurricane damage, tourism and human activities.^[12] The natural coral reef in this area has suffered chronic abuse and has been depleted by as much as 40%^[13] as a result of people walking directly on the living coral reef or from inexperienced divers causing damage with their fins and scuba tanks.^[14] Additionally, in 1997 a cruise ship disaster^[15] badly damaged a large section of reef in Punta Cancun and it was again repeatedly harmed in 2005 by Hurricane Wilma.^[16] Attempts were made to restore the reef in 2005 using hollow concrete domes as a regeneration program.^[17]

Conservation

The project is supported by Cancun’s Ministry of Environment and its Nautical Association.^[18] Within the National Marine Park Taylor's largest installation encompass an area of over 4500 square feet^[19] and weighs around 180tonnes.^[20] The Marine park is located within easy access for dive companies, snorkelers and glass bottom boats.^[21]

The primary aim of the eco museum is to redirect visitors away from natural reefs, allowing time for regeneration^[22] while developing new artificial reef habitats and incorporating coral propagation programs at the same time.^[23] Every sculpture has been designed to be stable and durable so as not to cause further detrimental effects to the underwater environment^[24] and act as a refuge for smaller fish escaping predators.^[25] One of the initial founders, Roberto Diaz of The Nautical Association, had an interest in promoting tourism back to the area. In an interview with the BBC he stated that in Mexico there was duly noted a loss from last year of 0.6 million visitors to Cancun as a result from effects of the worldwide recession, the publicity surrounding the Swine Flu and the continued narcotic war.^[26] In an article in the National Geographic, a statement made by the museum identifies with our dependence on preservation of nature, "The manifestation of living organisms cohabiting and ingrained in our being is intended to remind us of our close dependency on nature and the respect we should afford it".^[27] The overall aspiration of MUSA is therefore the preservation of the coral reef^[28] while boosting tourism to the country.^[29]

Previous artificial reef art works by Jason deCaires Taylor, are situated in the Molinere Underwater Sculpture Park in Grenada, West Indies. The sculptures in Grenada are a visual display of the rapid development of an already well established juvenile coral reef on his installations over the past four years.^[30] In an article in The Telegraph, Taylor is quoted to say about all of his creations "It's a symbiosis of humans and nature living in this cycle in harmony with each other".^[31]

Construction

The 400 plus sculptures were constructed using a mix of specialised porous marine grade cement,^[32] microsilica,^[33] and inert fibreglass rebar^[34] making the structures pH neutral^[35] and resilient to prevent any negative environmental effects.^[36] Research behind the design and construction of the sculptures was in collaboration with marine biologists of the national park.^[37] Each piece was mixed to ensure it reaches the exact acidity to promote coral inhabitation and growth^[38] and they had to be installed at the correct time of year to coincide with coral spawning.^[39] The collection took over a year to produce using inert materials that have properties similar to that of natural rock formations. The concrete figures are situated on the ocean bed at around a depth of 9 meters.^[40] After being located in the ocean the progressive change in appearance of the sculptures develops slowly due to the colonisation of nature. Algae starts to grow on surfaces within 4 weeks then coral polyps attach and within 3 years large sponges inhabit the sculptures.^[41]

The first three sculptures were installed in November 2009^[42] in Punta Nizuc and on Manchones Reef.^[43] Two of which have been impregnated with live coral cuttings taken from previous hurricane damaged reef.^[44] The second Gallery consisting of a large collection of figures opened was in November 2010 on Manchones Reef, is titled The Silent Evolution.^[45] They were manoeuvred from land in groups of ten, each group weighing several tonnes,^[46] and then transported in batches via a barge to the reef.^[47] During deployment a crane^[48] and float bags were used to lower them from the surface to the ocean bed,^[49] where they are drilled into the ocean substrate^[50] and secured using anchor bolts.^[51] In total The Silent Evolution collection weighed about 180 tonnes of dry cement.^[52] From the surface the complete structure is loosely configured into the shape of an eye^[53] with the ocean filling in the iris.

A recent new addition is a concrete Volkswagen Beetle weighing 8 tonnes,^[54] located in Manchones Reef. It has been designed and constructed with port holes in the windows for fish and an internal habitat structure for crustaceans.^[55]

In an interview with Kent News, Taylor is quoted to say "I would also like to point out that this installation is by no means over and the second phase is dependent on nature’s artists of the sea, to nurture, evolve and apply the patina of life,"^[56]

The Museum has been voted "One of the World’s Most Unique Travel Destinations" by Forbes^[57] and there are future plans to continue expansion to contain further underwater galleries including work from other international artists^[58]

Gallery

Hombre en llamas (Man on Fire) installed on 14 November 2009^[59] at Manchones Reef at a depth of 8 meters^[60] A cement cast of a local Mexican fisherman, drilled with over 75 holes on the circumference of the torso and impregnated with live fire coral ‘’Millepora alicorni’’, a fast-growing orange-yellow coral that can sting the skin when touched. It is predicted to cover the man's entire body giving the appearance of flames with its pointed finger-like growth. He depicts human dependence on and the overuse of essential limited natural resources^[61]

Materials Cement, fibre-glass, fire coral.

Weight: 1 tonne.

Size: 2 m x 2 m x 1.5 m cube. Figure 1.5 m tall.

Submersion date: 14 November 2009.^[62]

Location: Manchones Reef, Isla Mujeres/Cancun.^[63]

La Jardinera de la Esperanza (The Gardener of Hope) , installed on 14 November 2009^[64] She is a young girl lying on a tiled patio nurturing the surrounding plant pots propagated with live coral. The base of the structure is constructed to have specialized habitat areas to attract marine creatures such as lobsters and moray eels.^[65]

Materials: cement, fibre glass, ceramic tiles, live coral.

Size: 100 height x 240 width x 180 cm depth.^[66]

Submersion date: 14 November 2009.

Location: Punta Nizuc, Cancun at a depth of 4 meters.^[67]

El colecionista de los sueños (The Dream Collector), installed on 14 November 2009.^[68] A collection of bottles brought by the ocean, are collated by a male registrar and his dog. Each bottle contains messages from communities or individuals from around the world.^[69]

Materials: cement, fibreglass, glass bottles.

Size: 2 m x 2 m x 1.5 m cube. Figure 1.5 m tall.

Submersion date: 14 November 2009.

Location: Manchones Reef, Isla Mujeres/Cancun, at a depth of 8 meters.^[70]

La Evolucion Silenciosa (The Silent Evolution), installed in November 2010, is the largest installation in the museum and of Taylor's work known to date, it stands off the coast of Cancun and Isla Mujeres on a barren patch of sand.^[71] The collection took 14 months to construct with each section weighing five tonnes.^[72]

Materials: cement, sand and microsilica.

Size: Encompassing an area of over 420 square metres on the ocean floor.

Weight: In entirety, over 1800 tons.^[73]

Submersion date: November 2010.

Location: National Marine Park, Isla Mujeres and Punta Nizuc, Cancun, at a depth of 9 metres.^[74]

The sub aquatic installation is based on casts of living people mostly local Mexican's and taken from a cross section of society^[75] including some members of the international community. They vary in age and occupation from an 85-year-old nun to a 3 year old boy, to a carpenter, acrobat and social housing officer among others.^[76] The collection is to portray Mexico’s anthropological journey over time.^[77] One of the 400 figures, a linguistics professor, has been built with a false lung for divers to purge air through a hole in the back and view bubbles slowly escaping through the mouth.^[78] According to a museum statement in the National Geographic "The tight gathering of people is meant to illustrate how we are all facing serious questions concerning our environment and our impact on the natural world".^[79] The collection has been likened to be a mini subaquatic version of the famous Terracotta Army.^[80]

References

External links

• Jason deCaires Taylor
• Reefball.org
• CONANP
• Cancun Tourist Board