Garuda Wisnu Kencana, or GWK for short, is the name of a cultural park on Bali’s hilly southern coast famous for the ongoing construction of a gigantic statue of Vishnu riding on the back of a ‘garuda’ (a supernatural eagle-like being). The completed part of the statue is of the upper part of Vishnu’s body, the head of the ‘garuda’ and Vishnu’s hands.

The cultural park has become one of the favourite places in Bali for art and cultural performances, exhibitions, and conferences. GWK, once completed at 145 metres, will be one of the world’s tallest statues and erected on the top of the hill, with a magnificent panorama of Bali.

  

The largest outdoor venue in the park is Lotus Pond, contained by massive quarried limestone blocks. The 4,400sqm area can hold up to 7,500 people for dramatic big-scale events, such as music concerts, mega runway fashion shows, and much more. The garuda-head part of the statue makes a phenomenal background for events.

Street Theatre is the main commercial area where tours begin and end. You will find a GWK Souvenir Shop, ‘Bali Art Market’ store, and a reflexology outlet here. The story of Garuda Wisnu Kencana is related here in carvings on four limestone walls. A Barong dance is also performed at this spot every day.

The Vishnu statue on its own is planned to be at least 75 metres tall and the garuda statue should be around 70 metres tall. The weight of the statue will be approximately 4,000 tons. Some parts of GWK statue will be covered in gold foil. The project will take longer time for completion than initially planned due to Indonesia’s monetary crisis.