Lunch-goers may have noticed an unusual sight on their way to Avenue Bread in the Sunnyland neighborhood: a hollow, trash-filled metal orca at the corner of Iron and Carolina streets. The sculpture is befuddling at first glance, but its name — “Please Don’t Feed the Whales” — should clue you into its meaning.
The statue belongs to Tom McNutt, who also designs bocce ball courts for his company Boccemon. He stumbled across the orca’s frame in a recycling yard by his warehouse nearly a decade ago.
“It was a project that I’m assuming was done at Whatcom Community College,” said McNutt. “I saw this thing in the dumpster, and I said, ‘I’ll trade you another piece of scrap metal for that.’”
McNutt held onto the frame for about four years before inspiration struck. He first recruited the help of welder Mike Wheeler to refine the orca’s basic structure. Next, McNutt wrapped the frame in chicken wire and sourced the trash himself.
“It’s our note to the community in the Salish Sea that we live on,” McNutt said. “Don’t dump your waste in the ocean, or anywhere else inappropriate for that matter.”
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