Emoji Reef is EC3 Design’s first underwater sculptural installation, conceived for Miami’s coastline that is increasingly effected by climate change. Bringing together design, environmental advocacy, and emerging fabrication technologies, the project aims to create an underwater public sculpture park that supports coral regeneration; and raises awareness of the effects of climate change on the marine environment.
Coral reefs are among the most vital ecosystems on Earth, supporting marine biodiversity, protecting coastlines, and sustaining the livelihoods of millions of people. Yet, due to the rapid rise of ocean temperature and human interference, coral reefs around the world are declining at an alarming rate !
At the invitation of Time to Act, the Sao Paulo-based climate advocacy group with the mission to create impactful social-environmental change through the arts and science, EC3 is tasked to apply its cross-disciplinary design expertise towards marine conservation. For EC3 founder Edwin Chan, an experienced scuba diver with specialty certification in coral reef preservation, the project is a labor of love
Collaborating with Saudi Arabia-based biotechnology specialist InkSpire 3D, the project uses 3D-printing technology with biocompatible materials to create textured reef scaffolds where coral fragments can attach, grow, and thrive. Instead of using digital fabrication to produce a finished sculptural form; the project utilizes cutting edge technology to support coral reef restoration in a meaningful way.
Leveraging the familiarity of the emoji as a contemporary and universally recognizable language, the Emoji Reef reimagines the screen-sized icons into life-size public sculptures and marine habitat.
Consulting with London-based structural engineer Eckersley O’Callaghan, Emoji Reef is designed to withstand the impacts of tropical hurricanes as well as the 15-foot tidal range along the Miami coastline. Deployed by using a standard barge, the “naked” emoji forms will be gradually transformed into a living reef as coral and marine organisms colonize the 3D printed sculptures.
Arranged in a spiral configuration on the ocean floor, the sculptures create an immersive underwater landscape for snorkelers and scuba divers to explore and discover. Viewed from above, its strong geometric identity resonates as a recognizable emblem in the sea and a call for action !
With its potential to communicate across generations and cultures without words, the Emoji Reef is both an underwater destination and an evolving marine ecosystem.
Emoji Reef is a love letter to the fragile and ephemeral nature of the marine environment, as marine life begins to occupy and transform its surface toward a work of art shaped by nature.
Looking beyond Miami, the larger vision is to extend the Emoji Reef to all corners of our oceans endangered by climate change; creating a new model for underwater public art and marine restoration.
