As I take a walk with my dog every evening on the Coney Island Boardwalk, I always focus on enjoining the sounds of the waves of the ocean. I move from Brighton Beach to Coney Island, and when I get closer to West 8th street, my focus of attention switches to the New York Aquarium. The architecture and design of the New York Aquarium itself represent the topic of wildlife and its preservation. At this moment every day, my flow of thoughts goes from enjoining the beauty of the ocean to thinking about how to preserve its beauty. I elaborate on that topic even more in my mind when I see three pieces of art on the walls of the Education Hall of theNew York Aquarium.
These three pieces of graffiti are relatively new. They appeared on the walls of Education Center in the summer of 2017 on the World Ocean’s Day. Before that, there was also a graffiti on the wall. It was an extension of the last piece that you see on the right. It depicted the Coney Island neighborhood and the New York Aquarium before. Then, the Aquarium decided to renovate its walls and make a new design. The goal they were trying to achieve was to attract public attention to the issue of water pollution with plastic and to inspire people to protect our waters. The New York Aquarium organized a contest and three winners got a chance to install their designs on the walls. The winners and the authors of the art on the walls are Sheena Wong Shue, Danielle Mastrion, and Thomas Manco. You can see each artist’s statement about their work and artist’s bio on small posters by each of the paintings.
My favorite out of all three is the one on the left by Danielle Mastrion. It shows a body of the fish divided into two parts. One part of the fish is colorful and attractive in light blue water. The second part consists of a skeleton filled with plastic bottles and other garbage in dark water tones. For me, it represents how all the waste pollutes the water, turns it from nice, bright, and blue to ugly, dark, and dirty. Every day more and more plastic fills the ocean and brings the marine life to extinction. When I read the artist’s statement, I realized that my understanding of it was wrong. The author was using the idea of a phoenix and how it revives from the ashes. From the dirty water, a bright colorful fish comes back to life. My view of the picture turned out to be more pessimistic because I saw how everything is getting worse. The author, on the contrary, tried to show the possibility to change the situation for the better if we take the action and become more involved and attentive. The other two picture represent the same theme. They show us the ocean water and its inhabitants, dealing with plastic, and other waste in it.
From all the author’s statements, I realized that these artists are people greatly concerned about the issue of pollution of the sea and that they care about trying to change the existing situation. The location of the murals is perfect for attracting peoples attention to that topic. You can see them from the boardwalk when entering the beach. It takes the whole side of the Education Center so it’s impossible to not notice it. The murals are better seen during the daytime when the sun shines. It is great because at this time everybody is coming to the beach, to sunbathe, swim, relax… People come to have fun and enjoy their time, and the wall is here to remind them about the consequences of their potential irresponsible actions. Before entering the beach, people get a chance to glance at the walls, that might change their view on the time they are going to spend on the beach. The deeper meaning of the murals reminds them that they have to be careful and caring to nature, to the ocean. Maybe people will get affected by it and think before leaving an empty plastic bottle on the beach. Personally, for me, it did its job perfectly. I look at the walls every day for more than a year, and every day I get a reminder of how important it is to care for nature, and for the ocean.
by Anastasiya Chabotska
