Washed up onto the beaches, these things are everywhere.  And when the light hits them just right, they lose their tangled decomposing strangeness and become things of great beauty.

They fill with air and hold up the “leaves” (technically, blades) at the surface so they can gather light.  Functional and evocative.   I like the ridging pattern in the blades, too.  Another photo later, perhaps.

Kelp is a very ancient algae (many millions of years old) that is useful in thickening foods, cosmetics, and toothpaste.   You can check it out on Wikipedia. This blog  is more about the intersection of useful and gorgeous!