Jason deCaires Taylor,
son of a Guyanese mother and an English father grown up in Europe and Asia has been a jack of many trades before turning his criss-crossed experiences on underwater sculpture to draw attention to the relationship with nature through art.
Graduating in 1998 from the London Institute of Arts in Sculpture and Ceramics was part of a life journey to hone his skills and sensitivities to how we relate to nature. His lifelong love for the sea with ever changing dynamics of its ecosystems and his awareness of its fragility is at the origin much of his art.
Years of experience as a scuba diver and instructor and photographer thus helped to prepare the ground for his creation of new approaches towards art and the sea.
In Grenada in the Caribbean and more recently in Mexico, where he is currently the Artistic Director of the Museo Subacuático de Arte (MUSA) in Cancun, he sees underwater concrete sculpture as an artificial ecosystem.
With widespread degradation of Caribbean reefs, he believes that his underwater creations are refuges and a relief to threatened reef fauna and flora. Indeed, a succession of algae and other organisms colonise the surfaces, possibly preparing the habitat for other reef dwellers.
He hopes that involving the public in viewing the changes over time, how the marine ecosystems incorporate the sculptures into the seascape will increase awareness and respect for the sea.
His work has received growing attention, not the least through coverage in CNN, National Geographic, Discovery Channel and features in diving, lifestyle and other magazines.
See his website for more facets of his work and striking examples of living underwater arts.
