inspiration

get inspired!

A selection of resources to find out more about coral ecosystems and to discover artists using corals and the ocean as their subject.

In no particular order.

We encourage you to do your own research as new ideas and projects are constantly being developed.

Good art will speak to you. Good art will always be more than what meets the eye. It will spark emotion, it will make you laugh, it will make you cry and most importantly, it will make you think. Artists put a lot of work into their pieces.

Sara Paxton, artist

Corals and marine life

Mauritius: NGOs, organisations and people involved in coral, marine and coastal conservation as well as education.

Reef Conservation
https://www.reefconservation.mu/

Mauritius Wildlife Foundation
https://www.mauritian-wildlife.org/

Ecosud
https://ecosud.mu/

New Reef
https://www.facebook.com/newreefmauritius/
https://www.instagram.com/newreefmauritius/

Marine Megafauna Conservation Organisation Mauritius
https://www.facebook.com/MMCOMauritius/

Odysseo Oceanarium
Recently opened aquarium in Port Louis and well worth a visit.
https://www.odysseomauritius.com/

Gerald Rambert: Mauritian diver and talented underwater photographer
Stunning online photographic gallery of his travels
http://www.geraldrambert.com/
https://www.instagram.com/gerald_rambert/

Films / documentaires

Puff: Wonders of the Reef 2021
‘A baby pufferfish travels through a wondrous, microworld full of fantastical creatures as he searches for a home on the Great Barrier Reef.’ Great introduction to a coral reef.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-MdiE7gfmY

Chasing Coral 2017
Essential viewing: documentary film about corals and their bleaching.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6fHA9R2cKI
Full feature: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGGBGcjdjXA
https://www.facebook.com/chasingcoral/videos/1776577129313083
https://www.facebook.com/1496035944033871/videos/10155079684983870

Seaspiracy 2021
‘Seaspiracy examines the global fishing industry, challenging notions of sustainable fishing and showing how human actions cause widespread environmental destruction.’
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Q5CXN7soQg

Mission Blue 2014
Biographical film about remarkable oceanographer and activist Sylvia Earle
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1wp2MQCsfQ&list=PLHbJi8bLYHFvdXSi1homfmExirv0K_TQk&index=2

A Plastic Ocean 2016
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zrn4-FfbXw

My Octopus Teacher 2020
Award winning documentary about a man filming an octopus over a year.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s0LTDhqe5A

Jago: A Life Underwater 2017
‘An award-winning documentary about Rohani, an 80-year-old hunter who dives on a single breath descending to great depths for several minutes. Set against the spectacular backdrop of the Togian Islands of Indonesia.’
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8GvFRHgkao

Coral Woman 2019
‘An inspiring, need of the hour tale of a homemaker from Tamil Nadu, who, through her paintings, has been trying to draw public attention to the devastating effects of climate change on marine life and the coastal communities. It is, in fact, her love for corals that inspired Uma to learn how to swim, dive and paint in her 50s.’
https://www.coralwoman.com/

Blue Planet II 2017
Amazing BBC documentary series, with episode 3 on coral reefs.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAphgHhlteM
Clips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4aQqx_Zo00

International: places and projects

Our Blue Planet
‘Digital project to get people talking about our Oceans… bringing you incredible stories, videos, photography.
https://www.bbcearth.com/our-blue-planet

XL Catlin Sea Survey
https://www.catlinseaviewsurvey.com/
Take a virtual dive:
https://www.catlinseaviewsurvey.com/virtual-dives

Underwater Earth: saving 50 reefs
https://www.underwater.earth/50-reefs

The Coral Triangle Indonesia
‘Richest marine habitats on this planet, with world’s highest coral diversity’.
https://www.coraltriangle.org/

Great Barrier Reef Australia
World’s largest coral reef system.
https://www.barrierreef.org/
https://www.barrierreef.org/news/news/reef-partnership-to-plant-100-000-corals-off-cairns-and-port-

National Geographic Ocean 101
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfWyzrkFkg8

Lost Cities, an interactive story of coral
http://lostcities.org

NOAA Coral reef watch satellite monitoring.
Follow the changing sea temperatures:
https://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/index.php

Ted Talks (subtitles available in bottom right hand side)

About the ocean and reefs

https://www.ted.com/talks/sylvia_earle_my_wish_protect_our_oceans

https://www.ted.com/talks/thomas_peschak_dive_into_an_ocean_photographer_s_world

https://www.ted.com/talks/kristen_marhaver_how_we_re_growing_baby_corals_to_rebuild_reefs

https://www.ted.com/talks/phillip_dustan_can_we_save_our_coral_reefs

https://www.ted.com/talks/kristen_marhaver_why_i_still_have_hope_for_coral_reefs

https://ed.ted.com/lessons/conserving-our-spectacular-vulnerable-coral-reefs-joshua-drew

https://www.ted.com/talks/david_gruber_glow_in_the_dark_sharks_and_other_stunning_sea_creatures

https://www.ted.com/talks/ayana_elizabeth_johnson_a_love_story_for_the_coral_reef_crisis

https://www.ted.com/talks/mei_lin_neo_the_fascinating_secret_lives_of_giant_clams

https://www.ted.com/talks/children_of_palau_leave_only_footprints_that_will_wash_away

Marine conservation

https://www.ted.com/talks/alasdair_harris_how_a_handful_of_fishing_villages_sparked_a_marine_conservation_revolution

https://www.ted.com/talks/the_nature_conservancy_an_ingenious_proposal_for_scaling_up_marine_protection

https://www.ted.com/talks/greg_stone_saving_the_ocean_one_island_at_a_time

https://www.ted.com/talks/david_gallo_underwater_astonishments?referrer=playlist-ocean_wonders

Ted Ed on marine life

https://www.ted.com/talks/cella_wright_this_sea_creature_breathes_through_its_butt

https://www.ted.com/talks/darren_croft_inside_the_killer_whale_matriarchy

https://www.ted.com/talks/stephanie_sardelis_why_do_whales_sing

Books

Rambert, Gérald: Maurice Sous-Marine/ Mauritius Underwater. Orphie.

Sheppard, Charles: Coral Reefs. Princeton University Press.

Sheppard, Anne: Coral Reefs: Secret Cities of the Sea. Natural History Museum.

Bergbauer, Matthias & Kirschner, Manuela: Reef Fishes of the Indo-Pacific. John Beaufoy Publishing.

Weikert, Chuck: Coral Reef Curiosities: Intrigue, Deception and Wonder on the Reef and Beyond. Dayton Publishing.

Art

Artists

Amy Genser
http://www.amygenser.com/

Angela Rossen
http://www.angelarossen.com/gallery/ocean/ocean.html

Choi+Shine Architects
https://www.ifitshipitshere.com/choishine-architects-giant-lace-urchins/

Coral Morphologic
‘creator of innovative underwater media chronicling Earth’s imperiled coral reefs’ Great close-up photography of coral polyps and other reef creatures.
https://www.coralmorphologic.com/
https://www.instagram.com/coralmorphologic/

Courtney Mattison
https://courtneymattison.com/
https://courtneymattison.com/coral-universe

Jason deCaires Taylor
https://www.underwatersculpture.com/

Jérémie Gobé
https://www.jeremygobe.info/

Lisa Tubach
https://www.lisatubach.com/

Naohiro Kimura
https://www.instagram.com/naohiro_kimura0

Rogan Brown
https://roganbrown.com/section/327584.html

Tarisse King
https://tarisseking.art/

Teguh Ostenrik
www.lifegate.com/indonesian-artist-artificial-coral-reef

Vanessa Barragao
https://www.vanessabarragao.com/

Ted Talks on Art (subtitles available in bottom right hand side)

https://www.ted.com/talks/zaria_forman_drawings_that_show_the_beauty_and_fragility_of_earth/transcript?language=en

https://www.ted.com/talks/alejandro_duran_how_i_use_art_to_tackle_plastic_pollution_in_our_oceans

https://www.ted.com/talks/margaret_wertheim_the_beautiful_math_of_coral

https://www.ted.com/talks/jason_decaires_taylor_an_underwater_art_museum_teeming_with_life

https://www.ted.com/talks/shantell_martin_how_drawing_can_set_you_free

Ted Ed on art

https://www.ted.com/talks/iseult_gillespie_how_to_see_more_and_care_less_the_art_of_georgia_o_keeffe

https://www.ted.com/talks/jordana_moore_saggese_the_chaotic_brilliance_of_artist_jean_michel_basquiat

https://www.ted.com/talks/iseult_gillespie_frida_kahlo_the_woman_behind_the_legend

https://www.ted.com/talks/hayley_levitt_who_decides_what_art_means https://www.ted.com/talks/k_erica_dodge_gyotaku_the_ancient_japanese_art_of_printing_fish

https://www.ted.com/talks/iseult_gillespie_why_is_this_painting_so_shocking

https://www.ted.com/talks/noah_charney_why_is_the_mona_lisa_so_famous

My Modern Met articles

https://mymodernmet.com/paper-art-coral-reef-mlle-hipolyte/

https://mymodernmet.com/felix-salazar-macro-photography/

https://mymodernmet.com/rogan-brown-coral-paper-art/

https://mymodernmet.com/courtney-mattison-ceramic-art-installation/

https://mymodernmet.com/jeffrey-milisen-blackwater-photography/

https://mymodernmet.com/ocean-photography-awards-finalists/

TV Series

Sky Portrait Artist of the Year
8 seasons so far with 8 episodes each. Starting in 2013.
https://www.sky.com/watch/title/series/3e1cfda1-28a9-42f2-be75-220b7e8863ca/portrait-artist-of-the-year/episodes/season-1/episode-0

Sky Landscape Artist of the Year
7 seasons so far, starting in 2015. Available on YouTube. Available on YouTube.
https://www.sky.com/watch/title/series/35cf63bb-7b11-4af7-830c-35b6ccfbedd7/landscape-artist-of-the-year-2016/episodes/season-1/episode-1

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