The Curious World of Seaweed

Image: Oceans Edge I, five 25″ x 96″ panels of poly rip-stop fabric. By Josie Iselin.

Opening January 28

The exhibition features the works and research of Josie Iselin, a photographer, author, and designer of many books. Her book, The Curious World of Seaweed, features visually rich narratives of our iconic West Coast seaweeds and kelps. It was released by Heyday Books in August 2019. Iselin’s writing and art focusing on seaweed, kelp and sea otter puts her on the forefront of ocean activism, presenting and working with scientists and environmental groups to preserve the kelp forests of our Pacific Coast.

Seaweeds have been used by the Indigenous peoples of California and the Pacific Northwest for thousands of years. European explorers plucked specimens from our rocky shores during exploratory expeditions. In the late 1800s, women living in Pacific Grove, CA, sent fresh specimens collected around the Monterey Peninsula to colleagues at UC Berkeley. And, today, seaweed is receiving major attention as kelp forests rapidly disappear from our coastline. From nori to giant kelp, from bull kelp to surfgrass and eelgrass, seaweed holds many such stories for visitors to discover through Exhibit Envoy’s traveling exhibition, The Curious World of Seaweed.

Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 AM to 4:30 PM
Sunday, 12:00 to 4:30 PM

First Friday evenings, 5:00 to 8:00 PM
Closed on Monday & Tuesday