DeCaires Taylor has two major locations, one in Grenada in the West Indies, the other off the coast of Mexico.
Jason deCaires Taylor has created something haunting and beautiful under the sea, and you don’t need a diving suit to enjoy it. Though a suit would probably help, since to get the full benefit you need to dive down off the coast of Grenada, or Cancun in Mexico. The Silent Evolution, the subject of the first few pictures you see here, is eight meters down in Cancun; a 420 square meter artificial reef, weighing over 200 tons. In the first images it still seems noticeably, well, normal for lack of a better word. But the whole point of deCaires Taylor’s work is that, over time, the sea will add its own touch to his art. A starfish here, a touch of algae there, but before long, something completely new will evolve.
Then there is The Lost Correspondent, at Grenada.”Over the last 20 years, our generation has encountered rapid change; technologically, culturally and geographically,” says deCaires Taylor. “I feel this has left us with an underlying sense of loss.” Thus we have the man and his typewriter, eight meters down, slowly becoming one with the ocean.
The intent is as much conservation as it is art. Natural coral reefs are slowly dying off, and the point here is to create new reefs while at the same time preserving the old. After all, if people are visiting the artificial parks, they’re not going out to the existing reefs and causing damage. It helps boost tourism revenue while at the same time preserving the ecosystem.
If you get a chance, pay the sculpture parks a visit. You’ll be very glad you did.
Source: Jason deCaires Taylor
