Fairy – Giant St Kilda Penguin Sculpture @ Sea Baths.

An impactful ‘Origami’ sculpture of our wonderful St Kilda Penguins, by acclaimed local St Kilda artist .

Located at St Kilda Sea Baths, between the building and Jacka Boulevard, ‘Fairy’ is a place maker and reminder of the importance of our natural environment and local St Kilda Penguin Colony.

Fairy faces toward the St Kilda Pier, keeping an eye on the St Kilda Penguin Colony in the breakwater.

Celebrating the smallest species of penguin - eudyptula minor, or Little Penguin, an aquatic flightless bird that lives on St Kilda’s foreshore. Fairy is anything but a “little” penguin. 

Standing at 5 meters tall, and fabricated from 3mm corten steel, Fairy is an icon and place maker day and night, inspired by one of St Kilda’s least transient populations.

These birds live at the end of the St Kilda pier amongst the bluestone rocks. The stone breakwater is home to a colony of more than 1400 penguins. The breakwater was mainly constructed from bluestone and urban rubble, which came from the demolition of local buildings and the construction of a safe harbour for sailing events in preparation for the Melbourne Olympics in 1956.

This harbour is now used for mooring vessels, and its breakwater has become a habitat for a colony of St Kilda Penguins. The destruction of one habitat (humans) has thus inadvertently - but serendipitously - created another. The playful nature of origami invites and intrigues visitors and highlights the birds’ place in the community. This forms a bridge between public art and animal lovers, creating a new interest in the study of this colony of birds at a grassroots level. 

Come and visit this amazing sculpture, along with the incredible outdoor free art at St Kilda Sea Baths including  ‘The Last Two’, and Rabbitgirl and Dogman at Republica or our ‘other’ giant Penguin sculpture at  Beachcomber Cafe

About the artist:

Originating as a Hollywood special effects and robotics expert, local artist Jonathan Leahey has created numerous public art works in the United States, Ireland, Belgium and Australia.

These have ranged from monumental standalone steel works created entirely from objects found on site to kinetic, animatronics installations. For more information, visit: http://www.extremeleahey.com/

‘Fairy’ has been realised through the City of Port Phillip (CoPP) Activation Design

Competition “Reimagine” an initiative to explore and recontextualise use of community spaces. 

Its purpose is to improve the look and feel of local space through projects that engages pedestrian foot traffic and increase the appeal and benefits of neighbourhoods.