MARCO ISLAND—Marco Island Academy (MIA) artists, led by Robert Eder,  recently finished an art mural for Rookery Bay at its learning center on Shell Island Rd, Naples this past summer vacation.

Rookery Bay is a national estuarine research reserve that protects and studies estuarine systems, a habitat where the rivers and streams meet the sea. It is located at the northern end of the Ten Thousand Islands on the gulf coast of Florida where research teams observe and study  110,000 acres of pristine mangrove forest, land and its protected waters. It was during the middle of winter when an educator of Rookery Bay, Jeannine Windsor, reached out to Mr. Robert Eder, an art teacher at Marco Island Academy. “She said that she saw the other mural that we did and is wondering if we would want to do a mural for them,” Mr. Eder explained.

Mr. Eder enlisted a talented group of rising seniors from Marco Island Academy to bring the mural into existence. His team included Kloie Whitman, Marley Wilson, Sarahi Lopez, Chastity Miller, Marisa Roath, Angel Owen Turner, Emma Coppola, Alexis Pratt, Savana Baez, and former student Caitlin Libby, who came up with the concept and design. Mr. Eder conducted meetings before summer vacation, and, starting the 1st week of June, they began bringing the mural to life. 

The mural is divided into four parts. The first one is about diversity; a man is depicted looking through a microscope and the man himself visualizes what you can see through the microscope. It features different kinds of microscopic organisms that can be found in the waters. The second part is about relationships between the animals, mainly aquatic, and gives a picture of the food web that exists between them. The third division is about learning and shows two people facing a big aquarium and observing the different kinds of species inside it. The fourth division, which is likely the most important, symbolizes protection. It depicts sea turtles laying eggs by the seashore and some swimming by the waters. “Sea turtles are great symbolizations for protecting wildlife since they’re classified as endangered,” said Mr. Eder. The four parts of the mural are surrounded by sea grapes and leaves that are painted in different art styles of the different artists to put a little bit of their personality into it.

“One of the most special things about the mural is that since Rookery Bay is a learning center, they really wanted everything to be scientifically accurate so that as they can just point out the creatures they’re teaching and will provide a visual element on the learning.” Mr. Eder remarked. He also added, “They were also particular about certain details about the creatures like the structural form of the fish, for example, the jawline or its tail.”

Overall, this project was a wonderful experience to be part of the community. It was a project not to be taken lightly, as the overall message for environmental protection is a fundamental one to convey. There were a lot of factors that made the process hard, especially the bugs and the heat. Nevertheless, it made Mr. Eder and the artists feel rewarded by the time it was finished. It’s an experience they will always be proud of and they know will make an impact too.