Underwater museums of the world: immerse yourself in art in the depths of the sea

Underwater museums of the world allow divers not only to contemplate art and nature, but also contribute to the preservation of marine ecosystems.
USM tells about the most popular underwater museums in the world and in Ukraine.

Museo Atlántico

Atlantico, the first museum of underwater sculptures in Europe, is located off the coast of Lanzarote, one of the Canary Islands of Spain, in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
The entire exposition occupies an area of 2,500 square meters. m. The exhibits are located at a depth of 12-15 meters, so you can reach them only with the help of scuba diving. Here you can see more than 300 sculptures that reflect social themes and human interaction with nature.
It is worth adding that this is not only an artistic project, but also an ecological one – the underwater exhibits create artificial reefs, which in turn contribute to the development of marine flora and fauna.
Among the exhibits there are also those that raise social issues. The European migration crisis is reminded of the statues of dozens of people who seem to be walking on the oceanic day. We are talking about drowned migrants who died trying to cross the sea in boats.

The museum was created by the famous British artist, sculptor, diver and naturalist Jason Taylor. The opening took place in 2016.

Underwater Museum of Antiquity

The unique museum is located in the Gulf of Naples in the waters of the Tyrrhenian Sea, near the southern coast of Italy, where the ruins of the submerged ancient city of Baia are located.
Once a famous resort for the Roman elite, Baia was submerged under water due to volcanic activity.
In the 1950s, the Italian archaeologist Antonio De Maria began a study of the underwater ruins of Bahia, which continued until his death in 1989. Archaeologists have found the ruins of many villas and other buildings, as well as the remains of an ancient Roman road that connected Baie to the rest of the cities in the region.
Today, this place is an underwater archaeological park, where the remains of Roman villas, mosaics and other architectural masterpieces of the ancient era are preserved. It is worth noting that the original antique statues have been moved to a local museum for safekeeping, but divers can see their exact replicas.

The Underwater Archaeological Park of Baia has 5 main sites for diving: “Portus Julius”, “Secca delle fumose”, “Ninfeo di Claudio”, “Villa dei Pisoni” and “Villa a Protiro”.

Museo Subacuatico de Arte, or MUSA

Another Jason Taylor project is an underwater museum located in the waters of the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Cancun, Mexico.
It is one of the largest underwater museums in the world, founded in 2009. The location features more than 500 sculptures, which are installed on the bottom of the sea at a depth of 3 to 6 meters.
MUSA has an important ecological purpose – it is not only an artistic space, but also contributes to the preservation of coral reefs. In particular, the museum also reduces the load on natural reefs by redirecting part of the tourists to the artificial reef.

The museum consists of two parts – Machones and Punta Nizuc galleries. In the first exhibit, they stand at a depth of 8 meters, and in the second – at a depth of 4 meters. Punta Nizuc can be viewed from a glass-bottomed boat.

Underwater museum on Langeron beach

The underwater museum in Odesa near Langheron was opened in 2012. It is located at a depth of 7-10 meters in the Black Sea, about 300 meters from the coast.
This location became the first underwater museum in Ukraine. Its exhibit consists of a variety of artifacts, including statues, anchors, and other historical items.
The museum was created on the initiative of Odesa diver, former diver of the State Emergency Service Serhiy Zyatikov, who sought to popularize underwater tourism and create new opportunities for active recreation.

Previously, it was possible to visit the museum at night. It is likely that the location is currently closed to tourists and visitors due to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the danger of landmines.

Museum of Underwater Art, MOUA

This museum is located off the coast of Queensland, Australia and is within the famous Great Barrier Reef, the largest coral reef system in the world.

MOUA includes several interactive sculptural installations placed underwater that gradually become part of the reef system and contribute to the restoration of coral reefs.

But the museum contains not only unique sculptures, but also a laboratory that monitors the state of the ocean and the coral system itself.

A unique element of MOUA is the five-meter statue “Ocean Siren” that emerges directly from the water. Her prototype was a young representative of the indigenous people who, by design, seems to be looking at the land of her ancestors. It is also interesting that the sculpture changes color depending on the temperature of the ocean, using data collected by the Davis Reef weather station

The location opened in 2020 and became another project of the British Jason Taylor.