At Baltimore’s National Aquarium, imagining the Inner Harbor’s next century now takes a turn of the hand. Twelve original artworks by Baltimore Youth Arts (BYA) apprentices are on view in the public Harbor Wetland exhibit. Visitors can rotate three interactive tumblers to see the artists’ visions for the harbor 25, 50 and 100 years from now.
BYA apprentices unveiled the work on Saturday, Oct. 10, at a public gathering with the Aquarium. The event listing had invited visitors to the debut and a printmaking activity. BYA’s Oct. 15 recap says apprentices gave presentations, guests made art, and families, friends, supporters, artists and members of the wider Baltimore community joined the celebration. The group’s post confirms the installation is now on view for multiple years.
The collaboration took shape during spring and summer 2026. Thirty-one BYA apprentices worked with Aquarium educators and conservationists to study the science and history of harbor restoration. The Aquarium says the work began with a question: What should the future of the Inner Harbor be? The apprentices explored that question across three different time horizons.
The Aquarium describes the artworks as looking ahead 25, 50 and 100 years, imagining a restored, self-sustaining ecosystem where people and wildlife can flourish. The display presents those ideas as creative visions for the harbor. It combines what the apprentices learned about restoration with their own illustrations of how a healthier waterfront could look across generations.
The final visual narrative was a collaborative effort. BYA says 31 young people, five BYA staff members and National Aquarium representatives worked toward a shared story for 12 artworks. The representatives included educators, conservationists, exhibit creators and community liaisons. The Aquarium release says the apprentices’ artwork is original and frames the installation as a way to bring science and imagination together.
BYA founder and executive director Gianna Rodriguez said the project represents 31 distinct voices. She described the finished work as an example of how creative entrepreneurship and mentorship can shape individual artists and the way a community imagines its future. That emphasis on both the apprentice and the group fits the format: each artwork contributes to one shared display, built through collaboration with Aquarium staff.
The artwork is the second installment of Harbor Wetland’s Future Harbor display. Three interactive tumblers showcase new work by local artists every two to three years, the Aquarium says. Visitors can turn each tumbler to reveal the 12 pieces, moving along the different time spans. Harbor Wetland is free and open to the public.
The Aquarium says the installation is meant to inspire visitors and amplify the next generation of Baltimore creatives. Jenny Hamilton, the Aquarium’s director of community partnership strategy, said art can help spark visitors’ imagination about the harbor. BYA apprentice Madison Murphy told the Aquarium that a favorite part of the project was its collaborative nature and that people living in or visiting Baltimore would be able to see it.
Murphy hopes visitors will talk about the ideas they want to see change in the future and try to help make those changes real. Her response connects the installation’s public setting with the conversations it may prompt among people who live in Baltimore and those visiting the city.
The partnership also fits BYA’s wider work. The Aquarium describes the Baltimore organization as a creative entrepreneurship and workforce development program for young people ages 14 to 25, with a focus on those impacted by the juvenile justice system. Entering its twelfth year, the program has offered artistic, entrepreneurial and leadership opportunities across the city. Its description says apprentices build relationships, develop artistic skills and collaborate on major projects. Future Harbor brought those strands together in a public commission made with Aquarium educators and conservationists.
Visitors can encounter the installation during a trip to Harbor Wetland, where the three rotating displays make the artists’ work part of an ongoing public exhibit. For the apprentices, the commission connected months of study and collaboration to something people can see and discuss in their city. For the Aquarium, it adds a new round of local artwork to a display built around imagining Baltimore’s waterfront over time.
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