The Winged Turtle, by Mallorca-based international artist Lolo Garner, is a large-scale steel sculpture measuring 9 feet tall, 12 feet wide, and 20 feet long. Blending the grace of marine life with celestial symbolism, the piece resembles a winged turtle rising through tall seaweed—an angelic presence emerging from the ocean.

Fabricated at the Liquid PXL fabrication shop, the sculpture was crafted from precision laser-cut steel and finished with environmentally friendly acrylic paints in a vibrant, otherworldly color palette. Its architectural design creates a walkable space beneath its wings, encouraging visitors to move through and interact with the piece.

Installed on the sands of Historic Virginia Key Beach Park, just outside downtown Miami, The Winged Turtle honors the nearby turtle sanctuary and highlights the park’s commitment to protecting marine ecosystems.

This work merges public art, immersive design, and environmental awareness—offering a powerful, site-specific experience that invites contemplation and connection.

The sea is no longer safe. Choked by plastic and pollution, the turtle can no longer survive in her natural habitat. In response, she transforms—growing wings and taking flight. In this evolved form, she becomes something greater: a celestial being that leaves the ocean behind and journeys to Black Rock City.

There, she becomes a walkable temple—The Winged Turtle—offering humans a chance to enter her sacred space. Inside, visitors are reminded of their scale in the grand order of life: small within a turtle, small within the vast desert. Here, humans are not masters of nature, but guests humbled by it.

This piece stands as a poetic manifesto for ocean protection—a call to acknowledge the destruction caused by human hands. Yet, it is also a symbol of nature’s resilience and ultimate triumph. The turtle adapts, survives, and ascends. She becomes stronger in the face of adversity.

No matter how much humanity attempts to control or conquer nature, we will never win the final battle. Nature will always evolve. Always endure.