Michaelangelo of Marine Painting Finishes 1/2 Mile Whaling Wall.
Conservationist Wayland known as the “Marine Michelangelo” is being honored today at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in celebration the installation of Wyland’s monumental mural “Hands across the Ocean“, which spans a half-mile, seven-block length on the National Mall.
Wyland created “Hands Across The Ocean” in Beijing during the 2008 summer Olympics with the participation of over 3,000 children from 110 countries. This is the largest final piece in Wyland’s epic “Whaling Wall” series, which he began 27 years ago with the goal of eventually donating his time to paint and install 100 life-sized marine life murals worldwide.
The biggest environmentally themed public art project in history, Wyland’s “Whaling Walls” is the biggest environmental themed art project in history and an estimated one billion people on four continents see his work every year. Wyland seeks to inspire greater awareness about preserving the planet’s oceans.
Wayland’s past projects are:
1993
The Wyland Foundation Founded in
Laguna Beach, California
EAST COAST MURAL TOUR 1993
17 murals in 17 cities in 17 weeks
from Portland, Maine to Key West, Florida
SEPTEMBER 16, 1993
Whaling Wall 50: “Atlanta’s Right Whales” Atlanta, Georgia
450 feet long x 50 feet high
WEST COAST MURAL TOUR 1994
13 murals in 8 cities in 8 weeks
from Alaska to Mexico City
MIDWEST MURAL TOUR 1997
7 murals in 7 cities in 7 weeks
in and around the Great Lakes
SEPTEMBER-NOVEMBER 1998
Wyland Ocean Challenge of America Tour
50 states in 50 days Reaching over 120,000 public and private schools and 67 million students
APRIL 22, 1999 • EARTH DAY
Wyland Foundation Awards
Celebrates student achievement
Directors Guild, Los Angeles, California
1999
40,000 “Whale Tail” License Plates
Created by Wyland are sold raising money to help maintain the pristine quality of our coastline.
OCTOBER 17, 2001
1,000,000 students have taken part
in a Wyland Foundation event
FEBRUARY 18, 2003
Whaling Wall 90 • “Palau’s Blue Corner,”
Republic of Palau 170 feet long x 22 feet high
OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2003
October to November 2003 Wyland Foundation “Underwater Village” Educational Tour
AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2004
17-State East Coast Cleanup Tour
from Portland, Maine to Key West, Florida
JUNE-AUGUST 2005
West Coast Cleanup Tour
Invited communities in four states and three
countries to “Lend a Hand and Learn”
April 2006
Wyland Ocean Challenge: Clean Water for the 21st Century
An educational curriculum launched at the National Science Teachers Association Annual Conference.
October 2006
Barging Down the Mississippi Clean Water Tour
From Minneapolis, MN to New Orleans, LA
