Sand sculptor Peter Papamanolis brings ‘joy, wonder’ to Gold Coast beachgoers

Peter Papamanolis sees himself as “just a guy on the beach” but the father of four has wowed Gold Coast families this summer with large animal sculptures made of sand.

The Brisbane-based jeweller discovered his knack for sculpting on a family holiday to Palm Beach more than 15 years ago.

“I got into it by accident, carving things for the kids with a paddle pop stick,” he said.

“Eventually I got better tools, made them [the sculptures] slightly bigger and people started enjoying them. I just enjoy the whole process of it.”

When the local newspaper caught wind of his work and published his photo, Mr Papamanolis was asked to design a major sculpture for a conference.