From trash to treasure! Washed Ashore, is a non-profit fully volunteer operated project that takes plastic pollution from the Pacific Ocean and turns it into wonderful sculptures. Their mission being to educate people about the plastics that are polluting the world’s oceans, this organization provides a broader understanding of the issue. A local Washed Ashore exhibit is being featured at the Denver Zoo until January 16^th and showcases 15 incredible sea life sculptures.

The trash is collected by volunteers who then wash the trash, sort it, and prepare it for the creation of a sculpture. The Washed Ashore artists then begin to research and fully understand the aspects of the the creature they are creating. Margaret Mead, a cultural anthropologist once said “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Washed Ashore has for sure changed the way people look at pollution and have made a creative way to decrease it.

The intricate sculptures are constructed with hundreds of miscellaneous items that have been found on the shores of the Pacific Ocean, some items include flipflops, toothbrushes, plastic bottles, bottle caps, and fish nets.  All the sculptures are sea creatures that the plastic pollution can affect; they have incorporated in some sculptures aspects of the pollution hurting the sea creatures. Washed Ashore recreates sea creatures like sharks, jelly fish, turtles, and sword fish. Pollution has been known to be bad for our planet, especially sea animals who can get caught in the plastic debris or even eat it causing tragic results.

The founder and artistic director of the Washed Ashore project, Angela Haseltine Pozzi, has had a mission to save the sea with art since 2010. After walking on the beach daily she began to notice all the plastic debris on the shores. She began to learn more about pollution and that gave her motivation to take action on it.In Bandon, Oregon, thousands of volunteers collect the dibris along the shore, Angela and her team of artists, and designers then create detailed sculptures of the sea life. They have constructed 60 plus sculptures and have used about 38,000 pounds of debris.

Washed Ashore is a traveling exhibit and has been featured in zoos, aquariums, and marine centers all around the United States. However, 17 of the art pieces are permanetly installed at the Smithsonian’s national zoo. Now being featured local in Denver, it offers an amazing artistic feature as well as an educational purpose. The Denver Zoo is hosting the exhibit until January 16, 2017. The exhibit consista of 15 massive sculptures that convey the tragedy that plastic pollution brings to sea life.

Although Colorado is a land locked state, protecting the oceans will always be important. The Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) noted that about 80 percent of the oceans pollution, originates from land. Washed Ashore creates intricate sculptures that help to provide a better understanding of the problems our oceans face.

For more information on the Washed Ashore project visit http://washedashore.org/

For more information on the Denver Zoo exhibit visit http://denverzoo.org/events/washed-ashore-art-save-sea