World Ocean Day 2025: Malmö celebration at South Wharf Basin

On the upcoming World Ocean Day on 8 June 2025, Malmö-pilot of the Bauhaus of the Seas Sails, in collaboration with the city of Malmö, will host a dynamic public celebration at the South Wharf Basin, home to the city’s first underwater park. With its thriving eelgrass, bladderwrack, mussels, and fish populations, the basin provides an inspiring setting to reflect on our shared relationship with the sea. The event will bring together artists, researchers, firefighters, divers, and other ocean advocates—including the Bauhaus of the Seas Ocean Ambassadors—to engage the community through creative and participatory experiences.

Visitors will be welcomed into a full-day program from 11:00 to 16:00, designed to spark both imagination and environmental awareness. Among the highlights is Strandfynd, a performance by the Rebell Guitar Quartet accompanied by dancers Lisa Holström and Petra Nilsson, offering a sensory journey inspired by marine environments. In a more hands-on session, Ocean Ambassador Ellen Bjerborn will present the newly launched Creator Book, guiding attendees through a reflective drawing and writing activity that explores the ocean’s connection to our personal and collective stories.

Sound will also take center stage as artists John Cowhie and Lucy Cathcart Frödén present audio compositions made from recordings taken above and below the sea surface, providing a rare sonic perspective on life underwater. An installation by interaction designer Josefine Klintberg, the underwater binoculars, will invite participants to look beneath the surface on 360 degree videos depicting how the South Wharf Basin has changed over time from 250 years ago, moving forward reflecting on what it might become in the future.

The event also introduces Malmö’s new study circle on ocean literacy, where attendees can explore ways to deepen their relationship with marine life and test out activities that will be part of the future course. Several workshops will take place throughout the day, offering a space to connect creatively with the sea and the place itself. These include land art making with natural materials found at the basin, ceramic tile crafting using sea-sourced elements in a session titled Tales in Tiles, and a collaborative storytelling activity, I Wish I Was a Black-Spotted Goby, where participants step into the role of one of Malmö’s smallest fish to reflect on environmental change from a non-human point of view.

To close the day, the public will be invited to imagine what the Södra Varvsbassängen could become as an underwater park in the future. This co-creative session will focus on how the space can support biodiversity, community engagement, and inclusivity for all of Malmö’s residents.

Ocean Day at South Wharf Basin promises to be a celebration not only of marine life, but of imagination, learning, and action. The day is organised by the Bauhaus of the Seas Sails project partners Marine Education Center, The School of Arts and Communication and The Forum for Social Innovation of the Malmö University,  with the support of Malmö Municipality.

The participation is free of charge. For more information, click here.