Bloom

What happens when a living glow moves with you?

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What happens when a living glow moves with you?

Enter a world illuminated by some of the ocean’s smallest inhabitants.

Bloom, by LaJuné McMillian, draws you into the world of bioluminescent dinoflagellates, microscopic organisms that produce their own light. Marine biologist Dr. Edith Widder’s research into bioluminescence, explored in A Life Illuminated, offers a deeper view of this extraordinary phenomenon.

As you move, these tiny forms bloom and contract around you. Their scale begins to shift, transforming life normally hidden from view into a luminous field of movement and color. Across a hand-embroidered scrim and an immersive digital display, Bloom brings you closer to one of the ocean’s most mesmerizing natural phenomena.

Look closely. Then go deeper.

The OceanX Education Residency brought LaJuné’s artistic practice into conversation with ocean science. Exchanges with the OceanX Changemakers Community during a hackathon aboard R/V OceanXplorer helped shape the work, followed by dedicated time to develop it at Pioneer Works. The residency was supported by Dalio Philanthropies and brought together OceanX scientists, educators and specialists in marine biology and immersive media.

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LaJuné McMillian
Multidisciplinary artist and educator creating art that integrates performance, extended reality and physical computing to question our contemporary forms of communication. They are passionate about discovering, learning, manifesting and stewarding spaces for liberated Black realities and the Black imagination. LaJuné has shown and spoken about their work at National Sawdust, Tribeca Film Festival, Times Square and the Guggenheim Museum, and was previously Director of Skating at Figure Skating in Harlem, where they integrated STEAM and figure skating to teach girls of colour about movement and technology. They have continued their research on Blackness, movement and technology during residencies and fellowships at the Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship, Eyebeam, Pioneer Works, NYU ITP, Barbarian Group and Barnard College.

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