PacSci Features New Installation By Olson Kundig

Between Baleen asks visitors: What if you were swallowed by a whale?

Seattle, WA — October 23, 2024 — Pacific Science Center (PacSci) is excited to feature Between Baleen, an immersive, sensory installation by architecture and design firm Olson Kundig, on our campus through January 26, 2025. A baleen is a filter-feeding system inside the mouths of baleen whales. Between Baleen explores the humbling scale of ocean life, paying respect to the greater ecosystem of our local waters.

The installation uses recycled and repurposed ocean plastics and was created from marine debris collected off the coast of Alaska during beach clean-up efforts in 2023. Other materials used include rope and cork line collected from local fishing industry partners. Visitors can experience a dense screen of rope and extruded film that simulates whale baleen and feel the weight of hung rope as if engulfed in the mouth of a whale. Suspended in space on the cork line, cork buoys are reminiscent of the krill, plankton, and fish that become entangled in the baleen.

In collaboration with Net Your Problem and the Polymer Materials Engineering program at Western Washington University, Between Baleen presents a unique opportunity to immerse visitors in the ocean life of the Pacific Northwest while highlighting the efforts of organizations that recycle and repurpose ocean plastics in partnership with the fishing industry. The recycled materials used in this installation will be further repurposed, allowing Between Baleen to achieve a zero-footprint impact.

Between Baleen was designed by Olson Kundig with assist and fabrication by Dowbuilt and materials support from partners Net Your Problem and the Polymer Materials Engineering program at Western Washington University. The Olson Kundig team was led by Ozana Gherman and Nico Koppe with mentorship from Jamie Slagel and Clay Anderson. Recycled fishing materials were donated by Net Your Problem. Photo courtesy of Olson Kundig.