The pelicans have arrived - 24 of them to be exact - in a newly completed mural known as "Flight" at the base of the Manhattan Beach Pier.

The mural, painted by Charles Lynn "Chick" Bragg, features a variety of pelicans in flight against a backdrop of sand, sea, and sky. Covering the wall of the restroom building on the north side of the pier, its colors blend seamlessly in with the ocean backdrop.

The Manhattan Beach City Council approved the mural in September 2023 after wrestling with questions about whether a mural in that location would distract from the natural beauty of the pier and its surroundings. But the mural's supporters won out, and it is now drawing admirers who are coming to look at it from both the pier and upper parking lot levels.

The coloring and tones were chosen intentionally after much research and testing, Bragg told MB News. "I tried to find the closest color to the sand, the water, and the powder-blue sky."

The mural was funded by Manhattan Beach's Public Art Trust Fund (a fund that was established through a dedicated 1% development fee and does not impact the city's general fund). It took approximately four months to complete.

Bragg is an internationally recognized artist who happens to live locally. An avid surfer and nature lover, he says that part of the joy he takes in the beach surrounding is getting to know all of the creatures, which he calls "the original residents of Manhattan Beach."

Bragg has been observing the movement and coloring on local pelicans to ensure that the mural is fully accurate. He says that pelicans depicted by the mural are all of the same species, but their coloring varies due to their stages of life and the seasons.

The artwork, which faces to the east and north, is covered with clear-coat UV protection and an anti-graffiti coating. 

"Flight" is the second oceanfront project that Bragg took on this year in Manhattan Beach, following his "Sun Bath" sea lion mural on the steps to the ocean at 34th Street and the Strand.

Although appreciative bikers and walkers would stop by and compliment his work while he was painting at 34th Street, the crowds that he encountered at the pier were another thing altogether, said Bragg.

"As an artist, I’m more used to working alone, but this put me in the middle of a lot of people all the time," said Bragg. "Probably 100 people an hour would come by during the week and compliment me on the mural while I was painting."

Bragg said that during the course of his work he met visitors from Canada, South America, Central America, Europe, Russia, Africa, the Middle East - literally from all over the world.