Name announced for seahorse sculpture made of ocean plastic at Omaha’s Lauritzen Gardens
A seahorse sculpture made of ocean plastic had a contest to decide its name. The Washed Ashore: Art to Save the Sea traveling exhibit is featured at the Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha until May 14.
By News Channel NebraskaOMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - A seahorse sculpture made of ocean plastic had a contest to decide its name.
The Washed Ashore: Art to Save the Sea traveling exhibit is featured at the Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha until May 14.
The exhibit includes a yellow sculpture of a tiger tail seahorse. Last month, the public was invited to come up with names for the seahorse, and five finalists were selected. The choices were Bubbles, Dandelion, Scrappy, Sea Biscuit and Basura (the Spanish word for “trash”).
Winning with nearly 2,000 votes, the seahorse’s name was decided as Dandelion.
“Washed Ashore is thrilled to have our newest sculpture, Dandelion the Seahorse, debut at Lauritzen Gardens and receive its name from the Omaha community”, said Brad Parks, the Conservation and Education Director for Washed Ashore. “As Dandelion continues to travel the country inspiring ocean conservation, we will forever remember its start on the banks of the Missouri River and how all of our waterways are connected.”
According to Lauritzen Gardens, the name Dandelion was first submitted by second grader Ayile Chavez-Najera, a student at Castelar Elementary School, which is one of the garden’s two adopt-a-school sites. Ayile and classmates submitted names as part of an afterschool program about plastic pollution led by the Laurtizen Gardens education team.
“Environmental education transcends classroom walls and the sculptures of Washed Ashore have been a great way to engage students in real-world conversations,” said Christine Prescott, the Director of Education for Lauritzen Gardens. “I’m excited that out of all of the names submitted for the seahorse, a student was selected as the winner, and I hope this experience encourages the class to continue to learn about how their generation can make an impact on the environment.”
Dandelion the Seahorse will be on display at the tropical house of the Marjorie K. Daugherty Conservatory at Lauritzen Gardens until the traveling exhibit leaves.