Honolulu Wyland Whaling Wall 6

History of the Honolulu, Hawaii Whaling Wall 6

-Hawaiian Humpbacks

Wyland was riding "The Bus" heading into Waikiki when he spotted in the distance exactly what he had been looking for -the perfect canvas on which to paint the humpback whales, As the bus drew closer, the artist got so excited that he pulled the stop cord as if there were an emergency and leaped off the vehicle as it pulled to a halt. “I immediately saw a pod of humpbacks swimming across this huge wall,” Wyland says. “At one end, there was this tower section, and I envisioned a humpback jumping out of the water in a full breach.”

Today, Wyland claims that when he finished painting the wall, it was not much different from the first picture he had formed in his mind. The majestic mural, 300 feet wide and 26 stories high, displayed life-size humpbacks cavorting across a clear blue ocean that looked like an extension of the real Hawaiian waters in the background. The painting also included a group of playful dolphins, false killer whales, green sea turtles, and a variety of tropical fish. The 60-foot whale breaching up into the tower section looked so real that one expected to be splashed at any moment as the great beast cannoned back into the water.

The public’s response to the Whaling Wall was no less phenomenal. Painted on the side of the llikai’s marina condominium building, visitors by the thousands were greeted by the mural as they entered Waikiki. The mural, unfortunately, gave way years later to the construction of an adjacent luxury hotel that blocked the mural from public view.

Looking Back

• Even in the 1980s, when Wyland painted Hawaiian Humpbacks on the Ilikai Marine Building, Hawaii was suffering from an influx of population and development. These changes, despite the state’s attempts to manage them, led to many present-day problems, ranging from invasive species to water pollution to continuing efforts to curtail marine plastics.
• Plastic pollution—even from plastics originating thousands of miles
  away—continues to find its way onto the coasts of Hawaii. These issues are just one of many affecting the health of our oceans and waterways that the Wyland Foundation is committed to addressing through art, science, and community action across the nation.

Whaling wall 6

Honolulu, Hawaii 300 Feet Long x 20 Stories High
Dedicated April 21, 1985
By Russ Francis, San Francisco 49ers
Recreated at: Pacifica Airport Center 3049 Ualena Street
235 Feet Long x 151 Feet High
Dedicated December 15, 1999 by Governor Ben Cayetano

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