The Art of Diving Deep with Super Student Macy Noll

Time for a new episode of Your University: The FGCU Podcast. This time, our host Katie Cribbs talks with Macy Noll, a fifth-year dual degree Art and Biology student at FGCU dedicated to uniting scientific inquiry with artistic expression to advocate for a revitalization of ecological identity. Macy describes how she dove into campus life as a campus naturalist, public artist, research assistant, master diver and dive instructor, and volunteer. She also explains the interesting path that led her from an FGCU ceramics class to a Vester Marine Field Station project creating 62 biomimetic clay sculptures (earthenware and stoneware) to install on Kimberly’s Reef, an artificial reef about eight nautical miles off Bonita Beach, to allow marine biologists to study benthic settlement and encourage reef growth. That experience sparked her path into scientific diving and two years of reef research, including documenting early coral colony growth. Macy discusses how art and science overlap in observing and interpreting nature, using creativity as environmental education, and shares her “Knowledge in Motion” mural in the FGCU library, which was inspired by her fieldwork, and actionable advice to students about seeking opportunities through relationships and campus resources.  Your University: The FGCU Podcast is produced by University FM.   Episode Guide: 01:42 Campus Roles and Diving Life 02:37 Vester and Kimberly’s Reef 04:28 Benthic Art Project Origins 06:07 Ceramics as Reef Material 08:08 Installing Sculptures Underwater 09:14 First Dives and Coral Discovery 12:10 Art First Then Science 14:23 Art Class Turning Point 17:02 Science in Every Piece of Art 18:26 Library Mural Story 22:08 Why Choose FGCU 23:36 Campus Naturalist Life 25:53 Advice And Community Access 26:55 Closing Thoughts Episode Quotes: Art isn't based on talent alone 12:41: The reason you draw like a five-year-old, is because you stopped drawing when you were five. Everyone has the ability to develop that skill. I think people sometimes have this idea that art is based on talent alone, and it's just something that you're, kind of, born with. Why diving makes Macy more creative 19:39: You are just completely weightless and suspended in the water column and surrounded. It's a totally immersive experience, literally and figuratively. And you see the most amazing things. And you can have, at least my experience has been a much closer interaction with wildlife than you can on land. The fish will swim all around you, and you can get really close up to the corals and everything. And so, it's such just an up-close and personal experience. But even besides the amazing wildlife, for me, like, as an artist, it's the colors and, like, the light filtering through the water. And it almost feels like to me swimming in a painting, so. Experiencing the natural Florida in FGCU 24:29: You don't have to leave campus to experience natural Florida…[27:23] Even in the middle of Estero, on campus, you can experience beautifully pristine nature and be surrounded by cypress trees. Show Links: Macy Noll | LinkedIn Macy Noll | Instagram Library Mural Project | FGCU 2026 Macy Noll’s Underwater World | FGCU Library Mural The Depths of Creativity |FGCU360 Article What is a Cypress Dome? | FGCU Video FGCU | Vester Field Station FGCU | Website FGCU | Your University Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.