Seven new sculptures were recently added to North America’s first permanent Underwater Museum of Art (UMA) in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Grayton Beach State Park in South Walton.
Named by TIME Magazine as one of 100 “World’s Greatest Places” and a 2023 CODAworx Award winner for “Collaboration of the Year,” the UMA is the first presentation of the Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County (CAA)’s Art In Public Spaces Program and is produced in collaboration with the South Walton Artificial Reef Association (SWARA). The purpose of the UMA is to create art that becomes marine habitat, expanding fishery populations and providing enhanced creative, cultural, economic and educational opportunities for the benefit, education and enjoyment of residents, students and visitors in South Walton.
The 2024 installation includes the following pieces of sculpture: Reef Goddess By Raine Bedsole (Santa Rosa Beach), Deep Sea Three by Matthew Gemmell and David Showalter (Baltimore, MD), Sea How We Flow by Elise Gilbert (Santa Rosa Beach), Poseidon’s Throne by Nathan Hoffman (Highlandville, MO), Bubby Barnacles by Donna Conklin King (East Orange, NJ), Sunken Spores by Ashley Rivers (Gulfport, FL), and Ring My Bell by Bradley Touchstone (Santa Rosa Beach).
Access the Underwater Museum of Art (UMA) via Grayton Beach State Park which offers parking, showers, restrooms, changing rooms and a beach walkover. Once you arrive at the park, the UMA site lies in approximately 58 feet of water and is at a distance of less than one mile from shore, accessible by boat or kayak.
Experience the UMA site at-depth if you are a certified diver who is comfortable swimming in open water. The coordinates for the Super Reef Anchor Point are N 30°18.754 / W 86°09.521. Out of respect for the art, boaters are asked to anchor on or near the Super Reef Anchor Point to protect the sculptures from unintended contact or damage.
Dive30A in Grayton Beach is able to shuttle divers directly from Grayton Beach to the UMA site! Emerald Coast Scuba in Destin schedules regular trips to the site also.
We’d love to see any images you capture while diving! Tag your photos with #UMAFL or @UMAFlorida on Facebook and Instagram.
