Issue 14/2025, News
Coral greenhouse, the first underwater museum in the world
Sep
Exploring the world can take many forms. Off the coast of Australia, divers have the chance to descend beneath the sea’s surface to MOUA, the Museum of Underwater Art. The most fascinating part of the exhibition is the Coral Greenhouse, which delights tourists while also providing shelter for local species and supporting the recovery of the precious coral reef.
A greenhouse without glass in the Guinness World Records
The Coral Greenhouse, the world’s largest underwater art installation, was submerged 80 km off the coast of the Australian city of Townsville in Queensland. The location was not chosen by accident – it lies within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, a highly popular tourist destination.
The Coral Greenhouse is the work of British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor and rests 12 m below the sea’s surface. The 165-ton structure, made of concrete and stainless steel, was anchored to the seabed to withstand cyclones. At first glance, it looks just like a greenhouse, but instead of glass, the space between its steel frame is filled with water.
Inside, Jason deCaires Taylor placed realistic sculptures of trees, people, and gardening tools – the installation resembles a still frame from the lives of underwater gardeners. Around it, pots with specially cultivated corals have been set up – not only as decoration but also as a kind of incubator.
Art not just for art’s sake
Although the Coral Greenhouse is an extraordinary attraction for divers, its main purpose is not simply to draw visitors. The entire project was created to help protect and restore the world’s largest and most beautiful coral reef. Every architectural detail has great importance.
The distances between the greenhouse ribs were designed so that small fish and octopuses could easily swim through them when escaping larger predators. The underwater structure also provides hiding places for sea urchins, while the arched ceiling encourages the gathering of larger schools of fish. Most importantly, the neutral-pH concrete and zinc coatings make it easier for corals to colonize the structure.
Over time, this human-made artwork is meant to be completely taken over by nature, becoming a unique part of the coral reef, which is sadly still shrinking. As Jason deCaires Taylor explains, the design is biomorphic. Its form is determined by the forces of nature.
The coral greenhouse as an educational project
MOUA’s mission focuses on protecting one of the most endangered ecosystems in the world. Research published by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows that 84 percent of the world’s corals have bleached due to rising sea temperatures. In his latest documentary Ocean, David Attenborough also paints a bleak picture of trawlers ruthlessly destroying the seabed. Reefs are disappearing, and thousands of species are losing their habitats. However, these changes do not necessarily have to be irreversible.
The Coral Greenhouse and its companion installation, the Ocean Guardians – two-meter-high sculptures depicting famous environmental figures – form an underwater canvas where corals, sponges, and hydroids can grow. The reef is a dynamic organism, quick to colonize new spaces if only given proper protection.
The project is complemented by the Ocean’s Siren sculpture, rising above the water off the coast of Townsville. Inspired by a young girl from a local Aboriginal tribe, the installation is covered with LED lights that change color depending on the surrounding sea temperature. It serves as a kind of beacon, warning of the ecological crisis.
A visit to the underwater museum is intended as a lesson in marine ecology and a moment of reflection on the conflict between civilization and nature. Equipped with oxygen tanks, tourists can now easily enter the Coral Greenhouse and admire Taylor’s sculptures along with the slowly gathering marine life. Yet in a few decades, access may be much more difficult, with human traces erased. And this is precisely the happy ending envisioned by the creators of the underwater museum.
main photo credit: Jason deCaires Taylor
