Washed Ashore^®

Art to Save the Sea

Six larger-than-life marine sculptures made entirely from plastic debris, bringing a global conservation message to Topeka.

Washed Ashore: Art to Save the Sea Travelling Exhibit in Topeka, Kansas

From May through September 2026, the Topeka Zoo & Conservation Center, in partnership with the Topeka Rotary Club, will bring the internationally recognized Washed Ashore® exhibit to Topeka.

This powerful outdoor exhibit features six monumental sculptures of ocean animals, all created from discarded plastic and other debris collected primarily along coastlines. Each piece tells a story—about our everyday choices, plastic pollution, and the shared responsibility we have to protect our planet.

Washed Ashore® transforms trash into thought-provoking art, making the invisible impacts of plastic pollution visible from northeast Kansas to the global ocean.

See the Impact of Plastic Pollution Up Close

Washed Ashore® is a globally recognized art and education project that uses marine debris to create sculptures of ocean wildlife affected by plastic pollution.

Every sculpture is built entirely from materials that were once discarded—bottles, toys, packaging, and other single-use plastics—highlighting the urgent need to rethink how we use and dispose of plastic.

The message is simple: what we throw away doesn’t go away.