A giant mural by conservationist artist Robert Wyland has been painted over in Dallas to make way for a mural promoting FIFA, the international soccer federation.
The destroyed piece was one of 100 “whaling wall” murals that the artist has painted from Osaka to Detroit, and from Sydney to New York. Whaling Wall 1 appears alongside the Pacific Coast Highway and was dedicated in 1981; number 100 was painted outside Wyland’s own studio building in 1996.
The Dallas mural, Ocean Life (1999), is number 82, and it covered two sides of the Texas Utilities Building. The larger portion, measuring 164 by 82 feet, depicted endangered whales and dolphins swimming in the ocean. Crews started painting over that section of the mural last week, and CBS News shot photos of the larger side of the mural, almost completely painted over. A smaller panel on an adjacent side, measuring 50 by 78 feet, remains visible, says CBS.
“This mural was created as a message of hope, conservation, and respect for our oceans,” Wyland said in a statement to CBS. “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.”
According to a local Fox affiliate, “Dallas says Wyland had been asked” for permission to paint over the mural. “That’s a lie with a capital L,” the artist told Fox.
Many locals are unhappy about the mural’s disappearance, including New York–based art advisor Adam Green. “For many of us who grew up in Dallas, the mural became a familiar part of the city’s public art landscape,” he told ARTnews. “It’s right by the city’s aquarium, which always felt fitting, and I remember seeing it on school trips whenever we visited the aquarium or other cultural sites downtown. Seeing it painted over is incredibly disappointing because it wasn’t just a mural, it was a recognizable and meaningful piece of public art.”
The owner of the building is Toronto-based Slate Asset Management. CBS says Slate “allowed the North Texas FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee to cover the mural.” The company declined to comment on the record. The North Texas FIFA organization, which CBS quotes saying the new design will be by a local artist and “won’t be an ad,” did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
“Dallas is scheduled to host nine World Cup 2026 matches this year—more than any other host city,” writes Dallas Magazine.
“We look forward to unveiling a new piece that captures the current historical moment and reflects the energy, unity, and global spirit surrounding the World Cup 2026 this summer,” said FIFA in a statement to Fox.
