Microplastic pollution has been documented in nearly every major body of water around the globe, a side effect of ill-disposed plastic goods. An expansive collection of plastic fragments floats in the Pacific Ocean, one of five major ocean gyres, affecting marine life and poisoning seawater - a seemingly distant problem for most consumers. Mississippi Gyre presents this terrifying consequence of our single-use plastic obsession expressed through a meticulously constructed wave of plastic.
© Tom Paule
The art is situated within the non-profit Conservation and Education Center at the new St. Louis Aquarium. Located near the confluence of two critical American waterways: the Missouri and Mississippi River, the commissioned artwork will feature interpretive graphics featuring statistics about plastic pollution and what visitors can do in their everyday lives to reduce their waste stream. Five thousand recycled plastic bottles were sustainably sourced from existing recycling streams to create this immersive sculptural wave.
The project is created from the number of bottles purchased globally every .5 seconds.
© Tom Paule