Zooplankton are the animal life in the water column in oceans and lakes. They may not move quickly enough to fight strong currents, but many species do travel up and down in the water column, up to feed, or down to avoid predators. Zooplankton pass through layered water masses on these migrations, of varying salinity, temperature and origin. In the Arctic there is also living and non-living material in the ice. Frozen in as the water column freezes. Or from land sources, brought to the ice by wind, or the drift of the ice from a distant shore. Temperature change or brine concentration melts the ice and releases this material. It and the remnants of the water column dwellers form marine snow drifting down to the ocean floor. This project reflects abstractly on the layering of the ocean water columns and the movement of living and non-living material up and down, reflecting the cycles of life, carbon, and nutrients in the ocean, and the impact of warming on the system. The work uses easily accessible safe materials and can be viewed, experimented with and experienced in many dimensions and with multiple senses.

"The project itself seemed to veer very far from the original concept, through a mysterious undefined phase, and then back toward the original desire; to share the experience of the mystery and excitement of ocean sampling."

—Celia

"Rather than following a linear process, we developed an iterative workflow that required ongoing communication among collaborators. We tested, observed, and adjusted repeatedly, allowing the behavior of the materials to guide our decisions. This approach led to a final outcome that was more dynamic and open-ended than we had originally imagined."

—Ying