Exquisite Creatures: Preserved Specimens as Art

Exquisite Creatures is a museum-style exhibition by artist Christopher Marley, located at 900 Alaskan Way on the Seattle waterfront. The artwork is made from real preserved specimens. The collection includes over 10,000 pieces: insects, fish, minerals, plants, deep sea creatures, exotic birds, iridescent arthropods, butterflies, snakes, reef fish, giant crustaceans and rare orchids. Marley arranges them in geometric patterns and vibrant mosaics, so art and science are displayed side by side.

What stands out most is where the specimens come from. According to the exhibit information, all vertebrate specimens were reclaimed from zoos and museums, and none were killed for the art. Reviewers describe the exhibit as surprisingly large, with many species on display, and suggest setting aside at least 2 hours to see everything. On Google Maps, the exhibit has a 4.9 out of 5 rating from 241 reviews.

The exhibition opened on October 10 and is scheduled to stay open through March 2027, according to the artist's website. Opening hours are 10:00am to 6:00pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and 10:00am to 8:00pm on Fridays and Saturdays. The exhibit is closed on Wednesdays, Christmas and Thanksgiving. I did not find Sunday hours in the information I have, so check before planning a Sunday visit. Admission costs between $28 and $34. For questions, you can email info@biophiliamuseums.org.

Christopher Marley grew up in Oregon, where his father bred rare Australian parrots. Marley kept the ones that died frozen because he could not bear to discard their beauty. He spent over a decade in fashion advertising across five continents and maintains design studios in Oregon and Malaysia. He pioneered preservation techniques and uses a proprietary method to freeze-dry creatures. He is also the author of Pheromone (2008), which The Times (UK) listed among the best books of the year, and Biophilia (2015), a New York Times bestseller. His book Exquisite Creatures was released in 2023.