Iconic Whaling Wall mural in Downtown Dallas being painted over for FIFA World Cup, artist says
A massive mural in Downtown Dallas that has been an iconic piece of the cityscape is being painted over.
Wyland Whaling Wall 82, titled Ocean Life, is located on the Texas Utilities Building at 505 N. Akard St. It was completed in 1999 by the artist Wyland, covering two sides of the building with a vivid depiction of whales and dolphins swimming in the ocean.
This week, a painting crew showed up and began covering the larger side of the mural, measuring 164 feet by 82 feet, in blue paint. As of midday Friday, video from the CBS News Texas Chopper showed the work almost completely covered.
The section of the mural on an adjacent side of the building, measuring 50 feet by 78 feet, remains.
According to a news release from the Wyland Foundation, the mural is being destroyed for the FIFA World Cup.
"This mural was created as a message of hope, conservation, and respect for our oceans. It was a gift to the people of Dallas and a reminder that protecting our oceans is a responsibility we all share. To see an important public artwork with that kind of meaning treated as disposable is deeply painful," Wyland said in a statement.
CBS News Texas has reached out to the North Texas FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee for comment.
Wyland Whaling Walls
The Dallas mural is one of 100 that Wyland has painted around the world since his start in 1981. CBS Sunday Morning profiled Wyland in 2021.
His foundation is dedicated to saving the ocean from pollution through education and community engagement. The Whaling Walls are the most visible part of foundation's efforts.
"What makes this so painful is that this wasn't just paint on a wall it was a public gift about protecting our oceans and protecting what connects all of us. To see something with that much meaning so casually covered over without even a conversation is heartbreaking for the community. Wyland Foundation paints them upstream so people can understand that healthy oceans starts with everyone wherever they live," foundation president Steve Creech said in a statement.
