Local Artist’s Painted Coconuts Have Become a Sensation–and Are Now Found All Over the World

Artists come from all corners, in all shapes and sizes, and from every race and religion; John Pavart and his painted coconuts are a perfect example.

The former opal miner turned painter from Australia’s state of New South Wales has been painting coconut husks for years, leaving them around the beaches of Magnetic Island for tourists and travelers to find.

It’s become one of the chief charms of the island, even though Pavart started it on a lark.

“I just happened to have a bit of art gear on me and thought I’d pick one up and paint it,” he said, detailing the phenomenon’s remarkably simple origin. “I put it down and someone picked it up and they seemed to like it, so I just kept doing it.”

They often depict sea life and beachscapes, and by now the thin “grey nomad,” a term used to describe Australians in their 50s who move around for months out of the year, believes he’s painted over 750 of them.

“Lots of people have found one and it puts a smile on someone’s face,” Mr. Pavart told ABC News Au. “I’ve got them in Brazil, Spain, England—they’re all over the world.

Pavart’s coconuts are now so in demand he occasionally has to leave Magnetic Island for Queensland, the nearest continental shoreline, to look for more.

Once painted, he will leave a picture as a clue on a Facebook page he started to trigger a free treasure hunt, which routinely attracts many of the kids in the island’s town.

MORE LOCAL AUSTRALIAN HOBBIES: Never-Ending Literary Treasure Hunt Has Kids Finding Hidden Books, Reading, Then Re-Hiding Them for Others

He joked with ABC that between himself and the rats, the beaches are completely clear of coconuts.

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