When it comes to bubbles, the first thing that comes to my mind is breathing underwater... or at least exhaling. Many bubbles, of course, rise up out of your mouth. So it seemed only appropriate to take on a painter who paints marine life for this issue.
Wyland is a marine painter, sculptor, and honestly many other things that don't really have to do with his art directly, so I won't bother to mention it. He has been hailed a "Marine Michaelangelo" by newspapers like USA Today. From 1981-2008, he painted over 100 marine life murals, which can be found all around the world. This project is known as his "Whaling Walls", and it remains one of the largest public art projects. Some estimate that these murals are seen by one billion people each year. Wyland found himself named in the Guinness Book of World Records for painting the largest mural ever painted. This ocean mural is found in Long Beach, California, on their Convention Center and covers 3 acres! He completed the mural in six weeks. While you can see the Whales from a distance, as you get closer and closer to the building, you can see other sea creatures lurking in the image, including dolphins, sharks, and sea lions. Even more amazing, all of these animals are painted at their actual size in real life!
He wasn't finished with that supersized mural, and a few years later, in recognition of Earth Day, he painted the Earth on that building's 3-acre roof in just 24 hours! His newest public art project has him making "100 Monumental Sculptures" in 100 Great Cities" around the world. He plans in this series to sculpt all the great whale species along with endangered and threatened animals that can be found listed on IUCN Red List. It's expected that 10 of these sculptures will be underwater. When talking about his art and conservation efforts, Wyland states: "My art has always been about art and conservation. I was inspired in the early 70s by Green Peace, the first Earth Day, and from watching my hero Jacques Cousteau's Undersea World television series. I was simply an artist in the right place at the right time in history, and I felt strongly that art could play an important role in bringing attention to environmental issues."
Now that we have learned a bit about the artist, let's talk about some of his artwork.
First up, we have two of his fully painted images: Kissing Dolphins and Hanauma Bay. Both of these paintings are so detailed and vibrant that it feels like you can jump right into the painting and swim with the dolphins and fish.
Next, let's go to what I think is a really interesting series he has started working on, which is painting on paper. When an artist makes these types of images, it is often a huge opportunity for collectors because original paintings in the style of the two paintings above can easily be worth more than $100,000 if the artist is well known (not to mention they can be incredibly hard to find because of their rarity). These single-colored paintings on paper allow collectors who don't have as much to spend to still buy an original work of art. Most in this style tend to range from $1,000 to $6,000, which provides many more people with the opportunity to buy a one-of-a-kind painting (and let's face it, there can often be more of these because they would take less time too).
Finally, Wyland has also created sculptures depicting a particular animal in a clear wave-like shape to depict the animal in the water. Two of his sculptures are Day of the Dolphin and Whale's First Breath.
Finally, I would like to leave you with an image of one more of his murals. This one can be found in Laguna Beach and was originally the first mural he painted in 1981. In 1996, the wall was painted over, but Wyland was determined that the mural would be back. Finally, in 2019, the hotel whose wall the whales were originally painted on changed hands again and the new owner had Wyland recreate the mural in a gesture of goodwill to the community since the new owner knew some of his ambitious plans had people concerned.
In this image, you can see a mother and calf swimming side by side. Wyland states that these whales are based on the mother and calf he saw when he saw the sea for the first time when he was 14. Fittingly, it was at Laguna Beach he saw these whales and where he got the inspiration that kickstarted his career. Now those same whales are back in the mural where they belong (and Wyland also has a gallery right next door).