{"id":238364,"date":"2026-08-03T12:45:52","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T22:45:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=238364"},"modified":"2026-08-03T12:45:52","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T22:45:52","slug":"exhibit-plankton-art","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/08\/03\/exhibit-plankton-art\/","title":{"rendered":"Exhibit showcases community plankton art for World Oceans Day"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"students
Students working on their mandala (Photo credit: Petra Lenz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In celebration of World Oceans Day, the Alaska SeaLife Center featured a captivating exhibit that bridges the worlds of microscopic marine science and fine art. The “Plankton Mandala Art Exhibit” is the culmination of a multi-year collaboration between a team of ocean ecologists from the University of Hawaiʻi<\/span> at Mānoa<\/span> and an Alaska-based artist and educator. The intricate artwork captures the beauty of the smallest ocean animals, all created during an artist-in-residence program at Seward Middle School and community workshops at Alaska SeaLife Center. The exhibit opened in April and is still available to the public.<\/p>\n

“It is easy to overlook the details of an organism—until you try to draw it,” said Petra Lenz, project lead and research professor at the Pacific Biosciences Research Center<\/a> (PBRC<\/abbr>) in the 糖心视频<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology<\/a> (SOEST<\/abbr>). “Combining art and science allows us to introduce concepts and characteristics that are easily missed. Sensory hairs, eyes, and symmetry take on a new meaning when they become part of a drawing.”<\/p>\n

Sharing discoveries with communities<\/h2>\n
\"art\"
Plankton Mandala Art Exhibit at the Alaska SeaLife Center (Photo credit: Kim McNett)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The National Science Foundation-funded science driving this initiative focuses on the annual “spring restart” of the zooplankton community in the Gulf of Alaska, a time when tiny crustaceans awake from a wintertime lull and flourish as days become longer. The PBRC<\/abbr> research team is assessing the understudied winter and early spring cycles to determine how species of zooplankton grow, stay healthy and are distributed throughout the water depths. Zooplankton, particularly tiny crustaceans known as copepods, serve as the crucial link connecting microscopic algae to economically vital fisheries, seabirds and marine mammals.<\/p>\n

Lenz worked with Alaska artist Kim McNett to develop an innovative educational experience that translates complex biological concepts into hands-on art. While McNett developed the art component, how to engage students and adults in plankton theme artwork, select art materials, sample drawings and reference materials; Lenz and her graduate student Lauren Block worked on the scientific concepts and hands-on science activities.<\/p>\n

Latest research<\/h2>\n

Block also spearheaded much of the fieldwork and foundational research for the project. Highlighting the scientific success of the project, her findings were published in Progress in Oceanography<\/em><\/a>. Block\u2019s research integrated traditional sampling methods with modern molecular approaches to characterize the diversity, development, feeding and physiology of zooplankton in a deep Alaskan Fjord, Resurrection Bay.<\/p>\n

For more information, see SOEST<\/abbr>\u2019s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Alaska SeaLife Center featured a captivating exhibit that bridges the worlds of microscopic marine science and fine art. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":238376,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[105,665,1314,149,92,73,9],"class_list":["post-238364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-art","tag-conservation","tag-manoa-sustainability","tag-pacific-biosciences-research-center","tag-school-of-ocean-and-earth-science-and-technology","tag-sustainability","tag-uh-manoa","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t