Inside the Portland International Airport's Jellyfish Playpen

Soft of body, prone to aimless drifting and witness to all manner of shocking creatures, jellyfish and frequent fliers are more alike than they might realize. That's why it's fitting that in the Portland International Airport, a large space has been carved out to honor the arrival of a rainbow bloom of migrating sea jellies.

Air travelers cooling their heels during delays can come eyeball-to-manubrium with this foreign swarm, located behind glass in Concourse E. The underwater scene is the handiwork of Sayuri Sasaki Hemann, an ex-Portland resident now in Iowa City who's fascinated with natural phenomenon (she spends her days "visiting sheep farms" and "counting bunnies"). Hemann's been fashioning gelatinous zooplankton out of fabric netting since 2009, becoming so invested in her project that each "species" of jelly has developed its own peculiar personality. Flidais Desta is a colorless bottomfeeder that survives off Portland's steady drizzle, for instance, while Ukko Calandrae feed on "anxiety and worries, and produce happiness and smiles in return."