Okay not actual bodies. That would just be wrong and gross and really not relaxing. But how about diving in a man-made reef with hundreds of statues of humans making up the dive site? Check this out:
“More than 400 of the permanent sculptures have been installed in recent months in the National Marine Park of Cancún, Isla Mujeres, and Punta Nizuc as part of a major artwork called “The Silent Evolution.” The installation is the first endeavor of a new underwater museum called MUSA, or Museo Subacuático de Arte.
Created by Mexico-based British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor, the Caribbean installation is intended to eventually cover more than 4,520 square feet (420 square meters), which would make it “one of the largest and most ambitious underwater attractions in the world,” according to a museum statement.
In doing so, Taylor hopes the reefs, which are already stressed by marine pollution, warming waters, and overfishing, can catch a break from the approximately 750,000 tourists who visit local reefs each year.
The people in “The Silent Evolution” were created from live casts of a wide sample of people, most of them locals—including Lucky, a Mexican carpenter (center), according to Taylor.
The characters range in age from a 3-year-old boy, Santiago, to an 85-year-old nun, Rosario (both not pictured), and include an accountant, yoga instructor, and acrobat, among others.
Pictured in late 2010, “Sarah,” modeled after a U.K. linguistics professor, is the only “Silent Evolution” statue with a false lung, according to Taylor.
Divers can either fill the lung by blowing bubbles into a hole on her back or using air from their tanks. The air then slowly escapes though the opening in her mouth.
The sculptures (pictured in December) are made of a special kind of marine cement that attracts the growth of corals, according to creator Taylor.
The cement figures will change in appearance over time as coral and other marine life takes over—all part of Taylor’s vision.
“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,” according to a museum statement.
Before being taken underwater, “Silent Evolution” sculptures stand on a Cancún, Mexico, beach in September 2010.
Upon the installation’s completion, the total weight of the statues will total more than 180 tons, according to a museum statement.
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,” according to a museum statement.
“Silent Evolution” sculptures (pictured in October) sit in just 30 feet (9 meters) of water, which allows visitors in glass-bottomed boats to also observe the artwork, according to a museum statement.”
If you want to read more of the article & see more photos and a video head on over to National Geographic.
