This algae is not going to hurt you. Algae are plants, but in the water.

Algae are photosynthetic organisms responsible for about half the oxygen produced on earth. They’ve been here since the cryptozoic eon.

We think that, at some point a very long time ago, an abundance of algal growth created an oxygen rich environment on this planet. Then, a bunch of animals lived and died and lived and died and lived and died, and now there’s us.

Chlorella Vulgaris is a unicellular green algae. It’s often used for bioremediation processes and biofuel development, and does not produce toxins. I get mine from the good folks at algaeresearchsupply.com, who do amazing work.

You may have heard of harmful algal blooms (HABs) and are worried about one, which is totally understandable! Algal blooms are generally produced when industrial agriculture runoff and livestock waste cause a surplus of nutrients to flow into a body of water, overfeeding the algae and making a habitable environment for bacteria. This is not going to happen in a controlled environment like the gallery.

Algae are our friends just like bees are our friends. They are a vital part of our ecosystem, but if they grow out of control, then you’ve got giant swarms of bees everywhere. This piece is not a swarm of bees. It is a garden. I hope you like it.

This project was made possible by the generous support of Professor William P. Cochlan, PhD

And was partially inspired by this and this

Do you have questions?! Email me!

morgann.nieto@gmail.com