2016 - present

At the southern end of Bondi Beach, not far from Knotts Avenue, a strikingly colourful Southern Right Whale stretches across the wall where the ramp 1 meets the sand. This much loved mural is a vibrant tribute to the ocean and the spirits of those who came before us. The mural was painted in 2016 by internationally acclaimed mural artists Estria Miyashiro and K3rupt (or Kerupt).

Estria, a Hawaiian-born artist, is known for his powerful, community-driven murals. As Co-Founder and Creative Director of The Estria Foundation, he uses public art to inspire engagement and bring awareness to social and environmental issues. Since beginning his career in Hawaii in 1984, he has completed nearly 1,000 murals worldwide and played a pivotal role in the “Golden Age” of graffiti writing in San Francisco during the 1980s. K3rupt is a long term Sydney Graff artist whose tags have long donned local and metropolitan walls across greater Sydney.

For Estria, painting the whale in Bondi was deeply symbolic. In the words of the artist:
“Aloha! It’s a Southern Right Whale, which swims in your waters there,” he shared. “I thought tribes would have some relationship with it there. There are Aboriginal spirits as well—just acknowledging those who have come before us” (bondigraffitti.com).