Percy Trompf’s 1933 poster The Marine Wonders of the Great Barrier Coral Reef presents Queensland’s celebrated reef as a brilliantly layered world above and below the waterline. A small boat and its casually posed occupants occupy the light-filled upper register, while beneath them unfolds a far denser spectacle of patterned fish, branching corals and darting shoals. Deep blue and green water is punctuated by flashes of orange, yellow, pink and red, turning the marine environment into a vivid field of colour and movement.

Trompf was an Australian commercial artist particularly associated with bold promotional imagery, and this poster exemplifies the Art Deco-inspired clarity for which his work became known. Its streamlined forms, flat colour and emphatic lettering translate the complexity of the reef into an immediately legible advertisement. Produced for the Queensland Government Tourist Bureau, it belongs to an era in which graphic design played a growing role in shaping Australia’s identity as a travel destination. The reef is promoted not merely as scenery, but as an accessible modern attraction: exotic in appearance, yet presented as somewhere to be visited, explored and enjoyed.

A closer look

The composition is organised as a vertical descent. At the top, pale open water and sky surround the boat, leaving space around the human figures and creating an airy contrast with the teeming habitat below. Silhouetted palms and faint landforms appear near the horizon, establishing a tropical coastal setting without distracting from the principal subject. The water’s smooth surface acts almost like a threshold between two distinct visual realms.

Below it, overlapping forms build a convincing impression of depth without sacrificing graphic simplicity. Large striped and spotted fish occupy the central foreground, their markings articulated through crisp bands and patches of colour. Smaller yellow and silvery fish scatter towards the lower edge, while subtle bubbles animate the darker passages of blue. The reef itself rises in irregular clusters: a substantial orange-and-green formation anchors the lower left, and brighter yellow and orange corals flare through the right centre. These warm accents stand sharply against the surrounding cool tones, directing the eye through what might otherwise have become an overwhelmingly intricate scene.

The typography is integrated into this layered structure with characteristic directness. “THE MARINE WONDERS OF THE” appears above the larger “GREAT BARRIER CORAL REEF”, establishing a clear hierarchy while retaining the excitement of a headline. Along the lower margin, the practical instruction—“For particulars & bookings apply QUEENSLAND GOVERNMENT TOURIST BUREAU. BRISBANE. SYDNEY. MELBOURNE.”—returns the spectacle to its promotional purpose. A thin dark border contains the abundant colour and gives the entire design the finish of a carefully controlled graphic panel.

Context and significance

Travel posters of the interwar period had to communicate quickly in public settings, often compressing landscape, aspiration and useful information into a single memorable design. Trompf’s solution is especially effective because he makes the reef visible as a complete environment rather than relying on a conventional coastal panorama. The viewer is positioned simultaneously above the surface with the holidaymakers and beneath it among the marine life—an imaginative cross-section that conveys both leisure and discovery.

The poster also reflects the optimism of early twentieth-century Australian tourism promotion. Broad areas of saturated colour and simplified natural forms give the scene clarity at a distance, while the coral textures, fish markings and tiny shoals reward closer attention. That balance between persuasive advertising and richly observed marine fantasy gives The Marine Wonders of the Great Barrier Coral Reef its enduring visual character.

Choosing the right size and finish

Artwork can feel intimate at smaller sizes and dramatically more architectural at larger ones. Use the room preview, model image and size guide to see how the proportions and scale will work in your space.

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The model in the listing images is holding the 36x24in (90x60cm) version of this art print.

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Selected artworks can be produced at statement sizes up to 3 metres (10ft). Custom sizing and specialist framing are also available. If the exact option you need is not listed, contact our workshop.

This artwork is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The work is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present an art print without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas art and explore the differences between my different finishes.