1300 733 758

Ocean Siren

Great Barrier Reef Conservation Project

‘Ocean Siren’ is an offshore illuminated sculpture that changes colour in response to seawater temperature data received from the Davies Reef Weather Station on the Great Barrier Reef.

Standing fours metres tall and six metres above the sea bed, Ocean Siren is installed alongside North Queensland’s iconic Strand Jetty looking over to Magnetic Island and can be seen from various points along The Strand coastline.

Built in 2019 for the Museum of Underwater Art (MOUA), Ocean Siren is a creation of the world’s leading martine sculptor, Jason deCaires Taylor, with a vision to inspire reef and ocean conservation action and achieve positive environmental outcomes.

THE CHALLENGE

Sculpture Personalisation

Ocean Siren was to be modelled on Takoda Johnson, a young indigenous girl from the Wulgurukaba Tribe so the MOUA project team needed a way to quickly and easily create a scaled up model of Takoda.

The environment in which Ocean Siren would be situated would be a harsh one (lots of salt water, wind, rain, solar radiation) so the sculpture would need to stand up to the elements but also have some way of allowing the lights to be visiable and protected.

Fortunately, a marine steel and heavy duty transpartent Acrylic combined would achieve this and both can be cut on CNC machines that can be driven by 3D files – something that a 3D scanner can produce if processed correctly.

THE SOLUTION

3D Scanning and Reverse Engineering

One of the easiest ways to capture the geometric profile of any object – never mind something as irregular as a human being – is to use a 3D scanner.   Our Artec 3D Scanners are regarded as best-in-class for a combination of accuracy, resolution, low-noise and ease of use. 

Weighing only a couple of kilograms in combined, both the Artec Eva and Artec Space Spider were taken onboard an aircraft as hand luggage and we flew from Brisbane up to Townsville in the morning to conduct the scan and flew back later that day.  Only the Artec Eva was needed, but since the Artec Space Spider only weighs about 0.9kg, we thought it would be a good idea to take both just incase the client wanted extra detail.

After processing the scan data in Artec Studio to remove overscan, align separate scans, fill holes and so on, the final mesh was exported to Geomagic Wrap for further feature tweaking and sculpting.  The following day, manufacturing files were sent to Consolidated Plastics in Mackay for material cutting and fabrication to commence.

1 - 3D Scan

Although it wasn’t needed in the end, the Artec Space Spider picks up much sharper details on facial features. The 3D scan was completed using the Artec Eva 3D scanner.​

2 - Post-process

Although it wasn’t needed in the end, the Artec Space Spider picks up much sharper details on facial features. The 3D scan was completed using the Artec Eva 3D scanner.​

3 - Fix model

3D scanning humans usually results in several incomplete areas that are difficult to scan.  

Most commonly we find that: hair, fingers, ears and underneath feet all require extra attention if these areas are important in the end result. 

We can either import stock assets from sites like TurboSquid and merge them to the eisting scan, or we can use additional post-processing steps in mesh editing software such as Geomagic Wrap, ZBrush or Blender.

Scanning humans usually results in certain areas that are difficult to scan.  These areas, which include hair, fingers, and ears often require additional post-processing in mesh editing software, such as Geomagic Wrap, ZBrush or Blender.   We can use the 3D scan data as the master profile and bring in or manually create geometry to fill the gaps.

Location: The Strand, Townsville
Date: July 2019
Subject: Takoda Johnson
Use Case: Art / Heritage

Hardware: Artec Eva + Artec Spider
Software: Artec Studio + Geomagic Wrap

THE RESULT

Sculpture Personalisation

The structure of the Ocean Siren is fabricated in two halves, one facing the ocean in solid welded plate 316 stainless steel, the other facing the shore in a highly durable translucent Acrylic.

The sculpture remains out of the water at all times and is elevated six metres off
the seabed. Internally a matrix of 202 multi coloured LED lights are illuminated each day at sunset and gradually change colour from the centre of the figure to its extremities, similar to the display of a heat sensing camera image.

Changing colour as daily variations in water temperature warm and cool the reef, Ocean Siren is a visual representation of the current conditions out on the reef and can potentially warn of risks to coral reefs from warming seas.

It can be viewed at various points along the coastline and up close from the adjacent public pier. The lighting is entirely powered by nearby solar panels to ensure it is self sufficient and carbon neutral.

Location: The Strand, Townsville
Date: July 2019
Subject: Takoda Johnson
Use Case: Art / Heritage

Hardware: Artec Eva 3D Scanner

Software: Artec Studio + Geomagic Wrap

GET IN TOUCH

Leave your name and email below along with what you are looking for in the message box. Or you can call us at 123.456.789.

Youtube Instagram Facebook-f

Copyright © 2025, 3D Space Labs Pty Ltd

3D Space Labs
6 / 2404 Logan Road
Garden City Office Park
Eight Mile Plains, QLD 4113