Tahiti's layered cultural history is the starting point for Vhils' contribution to the 2017 Ono'u Festival, an international residency for dialogue between local communities and urban art. Carved into the façade of Lycée-Collège La Mennais, 54 rue Tepano Jaussen, Papeete, this Scratching the Surface intervention portrays a young Tahitian vahine, grounding the work in a figure tied to the island's living identity. The portrait points to the resilience of local culture in a place shaped by colonial, missionary and global influences. The wall belongs to a school. Confirmed still in place in 2025 and listed as active on Street Art Cities, its presence nearly a decade after completion shows how a community's choice to preserve a work can give it lasting significance.