Just 100 miles off New York City lies the Hudson Canyon, a vast underwater trench deeper than the Grand Canyon. First brought to light during the 1925 Arcturus expedition, the canyon revealed extraordinary biodiversity off the coasts of New York and New Jersey. Alongside scientists, women artists played a crucial yet overlooked role in the voyage, translating marine discoveries into vivid works of art that brought science to the public.

Artist Anita Glesta has been commissioned as Artist-in-Residence with the Wildlife Conservation Society to revisit this story nearly a century later. In the fall of 2025, she will join scientists on a new expedition to the Hudson Canyon, immersing herself in underwater drone feeds and collaborating closely with researchers.

Her time on the expedition will inform a multimedia installation and short film, planned to debut in the summer of 2026. These works will honor the contributions of the women artists of the Arcturus while reimagining their legacy for today.

Through The Hudson Canyon Project, Glesta invites audiences to reflect on the interconnectedness of all living beings and the urgent need to protect fragile marine ecosystems in New York City’s own backyard.

Anita Glesta (nee Curtis) has always been inspired by the intersection of science and art, and has consistently used her art as a vehicle of communication to express social concerns. At the age of 12, Anita’s poster for the first Earth Day went aboard Pete Seeger’s sloop The Clearwater to present in Washington DC for the first Clean Air Act. Below are The New York Times and The Riverdale Press articles about the artist as a child in 1970.