ART UNDERWATER IN MEXICO

For something completely different, head for the waters off Cancun, Isla Mujeres and Punta Nizuc in Mexico to explore the incredible Underwater Museum of Art. MUSA (Museo Subacuático de Arte) was established in 2009 to help with conservation of one of the world’s clearest bodies of water: Mexico’s National Marine Park. Nine years later there are more than 500 life-sized sculptures on the sea floor – one of the largest and most ambitious underwater artificial art attractions in the world. The Museum aims to “demonstrate the interaction between art and environmental science and form part of a complex reef structure for marine life to colonise and inhabit while increasing biomass on a grand scale”. There are three galleries – Salon Manchones, Salon Nizuc and Punta Sam – with all of the sculptures fixed to the seabed and made from specialised materials used to promote coral life. While qualified scuba divers can explore the underwater art on a scuba tour, there is also a glass-bottomed boat that showcases the contemporary museum.