Humpback whales of the Southern hemisphere

The annual migration of the Humpback whales from the waters of Antartica to the tropical Great Barrier Reef, off the Queensland, Australian eastern coastline is a sight to see. Many tourists go out on whale watching tours to get up close to these enormous marine animals. Personally I haven't been on a whale watching boat, yet, but have spotted a few from the shoreline. This migration route is a 10,000 kilometre return journey with young calves, born in the tropical waters.

These photos show work in progress as well as a finished panel. The whales have been hand drawn and painted, then outline stitched. I've enjoyed the research I undertook to learn more about these remarkable creatures. No that whaling has stopped in Australia, their numbers have increased to 17,000 making the annual migration.