John Brewer Reef

John Brewer Reef is a reef on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, and the site of the largest underwater sculpture in the world, the Coral Greenhouse. The sculpture was installed in December 2019, and it is the first underwater museum in the southern hemisphere. The reef itself is shallow, with a maximum depth of 18 metres (60 feet), and it suits beginners.

The sculpture. The Coral Greenhouse has a biomorphic form, shaped by the forces of nature rather than by straight lines. It works as an artificial reef, and the sculptures are slowly being colonised by reef organisms. The aim is for the work to be gradually absorbed into its surroundings.

Monitoring. Scientists and engineers have studied the structure since it went in, looking at socio-ecological and structural factors. Fish surveys have been part of that work, and the site shows how an artificial reef turns into a living structure as organisms settle on it.