Wyland The Artist in the Right Place at the Right Time By Steve Tabor
Wyland The Artist in the Right Place at the Right Time
By Steve Tabor
Wyland remembers that since the age of four years old he enjoyed creating art and wanted to be an artist when he grew up. Periodically, he would take supplies of household paints and create scenes of dinosaurs on the back of headboards in his house. These creations were later discovered by his parents when they cleaned or moved homes.
Wyland credits his first-grade art teacher for believing he could be a great artist. She took time during school and after school developing his skills and encouraging him. Soon Wyland set his goals to become a professional artist by attending one of the finest art colleges in America, the Center for Creative Arts (CCA) in the City of Detroit. He knew the admission process would be extremely competitive, and even if he gained admission, he would need to receive a scholarship to defray the cost of tuition. Throughout his elementary and secondary school career, he dedicated himself to create an expansive artistic portfolio in order to impress the admissions board at CCA. By the time he graduated high school, Wyland was not only admitted to CCA, but he did receive a full scholarship.
At age 14 Wyland’s artistic career was dramatically defined. During a family trip to visit his grandmother in West Covina, Wyland’s Aunt Terri, decided to take Wyland and his brothers on a road trip to the Laguna Beach shoreline. As Wyland stared out at the Pacific Ocean for the first time, he observed pods of migrating gray whales. Not only did these great whales capture his imagination, but they also captured his soul. Wyland states, “It was like seeing a dinosaur!”
Prior to his encounter, Wyland learned about the whales and other sea life through Green Peace and watching the Undersea Adventures of Jacques Cousteau. However, they did not prepare him for what it was like to see these great creatures in-person. The event was so impactful he has never forgotten how he felt at that moment. This chance encounter further motivated him to his pursue his love for creating art.
After graduating from CCA, he left Detroit for Southern California to pursue the “life of a starving artist.” About ten years after his chance encounter with the gray whales, Wyland approached the owner of the building within a 100 yds. of the location where he first encountered the gray whales. Speaking to owner, he outlined his idea for creating a mural on the side of the building depicting a mother gray whale and her calf. The owner agreed to the project, and Wyland quickly set about creating the first of his 100 Whaling Walls.
Wyland states, “My life is not only about the art, but conservation. My ultimate goal is to leave a legacy that inspires people of all ages.”
The Wall became a tourist attraction in this sleepy seaside town renown as an artist colony. Today, city officials admit to Wyland that the Wall and his studio have become one the city’s top tourist attractions.
Following the initial wall, Wyland set his sights on creating 99 more walls throughout the world. The walls became a voice for Wyland and the non-profit foundation that bears his name in a life-long effort to bring millions of people together for clean water and healthy oceans. We residents of the South Bay have been fortunate enough to have had three of those walls painted at Marineland, the AES powerplant in Redondo Beach and the Long Beach Arena.
Wyland admits that he has been a scuba diver for over 40 years, and his art is inspired by the diving experiences. He uses these experiences as he creates each painting.
The “Spyhopping” a spy hopping Gray Whale was inspired by the coastline along the Marineland cliffs where the Gray Whales migrate near the Pt. Vincente Lighthouse outside of the surrounding kelp forest. Using a lift for access, Wyland painted the mural on one of the three story walls that supported one of the ramp structures providing access to the top of the main building that housed a large fish tank and the arena that was home to the Park’s two orcas (killer whales), Orky and Corky.
The Long Beach Arena is the largest mural in the world, three acres. Initially, the building’s architect expressed concerns over placement of the mural because it would not allow the public to enjoy the original architecture of building. City leaders decided to allow Wyland to complete the project, “Planet Ocean”, which displays life sized reproductions of sea life found in the waters along the Long Beach coastline. In addition to the California Gray Whales and Pacific White-sided Dolphin, the mural contains a 110 ft. Blue Whale.
Wyland indicates the roundness of the building presented a particular challenge in order to accurately portray the animals. In the case of the Blue Whale, building’s circular shape did not allow him to see the head or tail of the animal when he was painting the mid-section of the animal. Wyland states, “I had to rely on the picture I created in my mind when I was on the ground looking at the building and imagining where the whale would be placed.”
To celebrate Earth Day in 2009, Wyland and his foundation team refreshed the mural and then painted a mural of the Earth on the roof of the building. Painting the additional 3 acres of the roof brought the completed mural project to approximately 6 acres.
Currently, Wyland’s mural “Gray Whale Migration” created in 1991 on the AES power plant at King Harbor in Redondo Beach is in the midst of a controversy. The City of Redondo Beach mayor and environmental advocates have longed to shutdown the power plant because of its negative impact on the ocean environment and air pollution issues. However, any redevelopment plans beyond parkland require voter approval.
The site was purchased by developers in March 2020. According to the developer, Leo Pustilnikov, Wyland signed an agreement that the mural would be preserved for 20 years, 2011. Pustilnikov initially reached out to the Wyland Foundation “As a preemptive measure, I reached out to them to say it looks like the plant is shutting down so let’s see if we can preserve some pieces.”
Wyland and Wyland Foundation President, Steven Creech, stressed that the Mural is protected by the Visual Artist Act of 1990, which requires written consent of the artist before the work can be destroyed. While Wyland and Creech both agreed that they would prefer to see the power plant removed in the near future, they believe the mural still represents an important message to people in the area about marine life conservation.
Currently, the future of the mural is yet to be determined. Redevelopment plans outline the removal of the power plant and a mixed-use development.
This not the first time Wyland’s murals have fallen victim to the hands of development. Wyland learned of the destruction of his Marineland creation while he was in Japan completing another great whale mural. Wyland states, “I opened the newspaper and saw a picture of a huge steel wrecking ball crashing into the face of the gray whale.”
His original creation in Laguna Beach was painted over during a property line dispute involving an adjacent hotel and the building displaying the whale. The hotel painted over the mural without consulting the property owner or Wyland. It just so happened that the original owner of the property had passed away and his family was closing out his estate. The hotel offered to buy the building in order to tear it down and build a parking lot. Before closing the deal, the family approached Wyland about purchasing the property. Wyland more than doubled the hotel’s offer. Wyland not only repainted mural respecting the established boundary line, but transformed the interior of the building into his studio and art gallery.
Wyland completed 100th Whaling Wall in Beijing, China during the 2008 Olympic Games where he served as the official USA Olympic Team Artist. He looks forward to continuing this role in upcoming Summer Games in Tokyo. He is inspired by former USA Olympic Team Artist, Leroy Neiman, who he learned of when he was a youngster while watching the Olympic Games at home. Wyland explains, “It is a great honor to follow in Neiman’s footsteps.”
In 2019, at the request of his friend and rock musician, Eddie Vedder. Eddie and he completed the 101st Whaling Wall of a life size pod of orcas on the Edgewater Hotel in Seattle, Washington.
In addition to using blank building walls as his canvas, in 2018, Wyland created a mural on the hull of the Norwegian Cruise Liner, “Bliss”. Glimpses of the ship can be seen in Norwegian Cruise Line advertisements.
Wyland still finds time to create painting, sculptures and other pieces of art using a variety of mediums. Wyland says, “As an artist, you continually have to push yourself and stimulate your creativity.”
According to Wyland, “I spend weeks in the studio working on my oil paintings. Over the course of time, the work will evolve from a blur of color until the background comes into focus. Then there is that moment of revelation when I see how a particular animal might swim or how I should position the fish, turtles, and other life among a coral reef, for instance. Every new piece is an adventure.”
Wyland and the Wyland Foundation are currently involved in two projects that keep his imagination engaged. Working with the USA Surfing Team, Wyland is creating one of kind paintings on surfboards that will be available for auction with the proceeds going to support the USA Surfing Team programs. The Wyland Foundation will be working closely with USA Surfing to provide environmental outreach and education on behalf of the organization, as well as creating clothing and gifts for sale that support the work of both organizations.
Another of his projects is to create 100 life-sized sea life sculptures that will be displayed throughout the world made of bronze and stainless steel. At least ten of the pieces will be placed underwater. The first piece, a 22 ft. bronze orca, will be placed in the Icy Point Straits, Alaska. Wyland chuckles, “It took me about 25 years to do a hundred Whaling Walls. I look forward to the next 25.”
In addition to his studio work, Wyland continues building his legacy through the Wyland Foundation, which he started in 1993 to, “Inspire millions to take action to ensure clean water and a healthy planet through art, science and conservation.” The foundation has developed in stature in the past several years with programs, including the Wyland National Mayor’s Challenge for Water Conservation (WNMCWC), a partnership with Toyota and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, that brings together people from thousands of cities each year to take action to protect our coast, lakes, rivers, streams, and wetlands.
According to Wyland, “Today we see a much larger picture. To the whales and other species, we care about, it starts with improving the health of the entire planet.”
To that end, the foundation’s WNMCWC calls on mayors of various cities across the U.S., to not only to look for ways for their cities to use water wisely and protect their water sources, but to involve residents by examining ways in their own home they can conserve water, reduce water pollution, and protect water resources. This program has gone international by partnering with the United Nations Environmental Program.
In order to inspire our future leaders, the Foundation has created the Clean Water Mobile Learning Center. The Mobile Learning Center houses a 40-person multi-sensory theater and seven interactive stations using a standards-based curriculum focusing on ways the availability and quality of water affects our daily lives.
In addition, between October 1st and December 1st, the Foundation conducts its annual Wyland National Art Challenge. This is a competition open to all students across the U.S. Individuals or groups of students are encouraged to submit art projects based on environmental issues.
The Classroom Mural category awards three winning classrooms with $250 in art supplies.
The Individual Artist category awards a $500 scholarship to an 11th or a 12th grade student. Winning students in lower grade levels receive $50 in art supplies.
The Photography Category awards one 11th or 12th grade student a $250 scholarship. One additional winner is selected to receive a $50 gift card.
Looking back on his career, so far, Wyland states, “I was simply an artist in the right place at the right time in history and felt strongly that art could play an important role in bringing attention to environmental issues.”
Steve Tabor Bio
This South Bay native’s photographic journey began after receiving his first 35mm film camera upon earning his Bachelor of Arts degree. Steve began with photographing coastal landscapes and marine life. As a classroom teacher he used photography to share the world and his experiences with his students. Steve has expanded his photographic talents to include portraits and group photography, special event photography as well as live performance and athletics. Steve serves as a volunteer ranger for the Catalina Island Conservancy and uses this opportunity to document the flora and fauna of the island’s interior as well as photograph special events and activities.
Watch for Steve Tabor Images on the worldwide web.