Designing Space to Grow:  HS students pose with founder Arlene Cameron Llod at RL Brown  Elementary and their garden planters made from recycled materials.

River Wise was presented to the Jacksonville University Marine Science Department in [month] of [year] by MFA graduate, Tiffany Arteaga Gonzalez. In conception of this work, she sought consultation from MFE students to validate the existence of the native species and threats which were planned to be incorporated in the final mosaic. Then, with confidence in the accuracy of her design, she began the 3-month undertaking which would become River Wise. During a two week residency, 3D students worked hands-on with the artist, while learning the process of creating a ceramic mural. Gonzalez, a lifetime resident of Jacksonville with a passion for the St. John’s, crafts a porthole into the vast ecological diversity supported by our river, and the anthropogenic influences which threaten its delicate balance. Note that each species is dependent upon the last, from the filter-feeding Oyster, to the humble Bull Mullet, to the majestic Double Crested Cormorant- all things are connected, even pollutants. These man-made impurities, such as nutrient, petroleum, and human waste pollution, are represented by symbols of their respective threat. Despite our collective mistreatment of the lifeblood of our city, we, especially our community at Jacksonville University, and abroad, continue to enjoy and protect the natural facilities which the St. John’s River provides. This piece was created so that the sanctity of our river may be preserved for the enjoyment of the generations which follow, and that its beauty may endure for that of our own.