Washed Ashore: Art to Save the Sea is making its way to the Topeka area this summer! This powerful traveling exhibit transforms ocean pollution into stunning art, like Bernie the Royal Blue Tang.
From May through September 2026, the Topeka Zoo & Conservation Center, in collaboration 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.
After visiting Bernie, find the other five exhibits around Topeka:
Stanley the Sturgeon - Topeka Zoo & Conservation Center
Great the Great White Shark - Topeka Zoo & Conservation Center
Dandelion the Seahorse - Kansas Children's Discovery Center
Sea Jelly Bloom - NOTO Arts District
Zorabelle the Rockhopper Penguin - Washburn University
AGE GROUP: | Teens (6th - 12th Grade) | Elementary (K - 5th Grade) | Early Learners (Birth - Pre-K) | Adults |
EVENT TYPE: | Promotion |
Our mission is sparking curiosity and connecting our community through literacy and learning. The library features the Alice C. Sabatini Gallery, the Millennium Café, Chandler Booktique (bookstore and gift shop), free meeting rooms, computer training and free Wi-Fi access. The library has a collection of more than 414,000 books and serves more than 81,000 registered borrowers. Bookmobiles make 23 stops Monday-Saturday across Shawnee County. The website tscpl.org serves customers’ needs 24/7. The library offers state-of-the art technology, youth programs that encourage learning and reading, adult learning programs, online learning tools, events, and reference and research tools.
