JUNO BEACH, Fla. — While Loggerhead Marinelife Center doesn’t have any turtle patients at the moment, the area near the tanks just received some new residents in the form of artwork.
Artist Devin Noel is a muralist who typically works on vertical surfaces. This time, she worked to transform a dome-shaped hatch cover next to the turtle tanks.
“The idea was the beautification of this whole cover so we came up with a couple of ideas and this one had educational value which I know is super important to the Loggerhead Marinelife mission. So get excited for the kids and really kind of display something that is the life cycle of the turtle, So yeah, here we are!” she said.
In painting any subject matter, Noel becomes an expert.
“The design is such a fun aspect because it’s like whether it’s a plant or an animal, you’re like I know so many fun facts! I can paint this, and you have to learn the whole history just really get into it. You always take some new information with you as you’re painting. And it feels like a special little knowledge of treasure,” Noel said.
The painting features baby sea turtles in various stages of hatching, something that happens every year just feet away on Juno Beach. The stretch of shoreline is one of the most densely nested beaches of loggerhead sea turtles in the world. Five of the world’s seven species of sea turtle can be discovered off the shore of Juno Beach.
“I thought of it as like a lens, like a bubble view into a tank, or through a photograph, like a camera lens to the beach,” Noel said.
Noel is delighted to see visitors gaze at her work.
“You can bring joy, you can bring beauty to an area, you can educate people and create engagement and it’s like this is an entryway moment, I’m so excited,” she said.
The project has been fulfilling and exciting as its come to fruition, Noel working in the Florida sunshine as visitors milled by the chain-link fence during renovations.
“When a facility like this reaches out and they want a piece of your art, there’s no better feeling to be seen and to be able to create something that really truly will bring joy to people. On a creative mission, there is like no bigger goal. And I’m just so proud and so grateful, honestly so grateful,” she said.