ISLAMORADA, Florida Keys — Sea life artist David Dunleavy has completed a gargantuan “Dolphin Rodeo” mural on the sides of two metal boat barns in the Florida Keys.
Dunleavy’s large-scale creation, featuring a bull and cow dolphin fish leaping to feed on flying fish, stretches 252 feet wide and 32 feet high. The New Jersey-based artist says they are the largest dolphin fish, also known as mahi-mahi, ever painted in the world.
Dunleavy worked seven to eight hours per day for 23 days to create the vibrant illustration at Tavernier Creek Marina, using more than 400 gallons of paint. The marina’s location just off the Florida Keys Overseas Highway ensures the mural’s high visibility for southbound motorists.
It is the 62nd in a series of outdoor sea life murals Dunleavy has painted in the U.S., Bahamas and Australia. It is his fourth mural in the Keys and has become the largest outdoor artwork ever created in the island chain.
The artwork is scheduled to be dedicated during the Nick Sheahan Dolphin Rodeo Tournament set for May 4-6, 2016, at Tavernier Creek Marina. Sherwin Williams donated some of the paint and Sunbelt Rentals provided the hydraulic lift Dunleavy used to complete the mural.
