EXCLUSIVE

While the aura of Anthony Bourdain lives on, fans who drive down Wilshire in West L.A. will get an extra reminder of the celebrity chef ... thanks to an awesome new painting by a popular street muralist.

Jonas Never completed his Bourdain mural Friday in Santa Monica, on the side wall of a new restaurant and bar called Gramercy. He tells TMZ ... he was hired by the joint to paint its signage lettering, and asked if he could also do the mural as a tribute.

Never says he saw how the world was affected by Bourdain's suicide and the legacy he left behind, so he felt compelled to find a way to honor him. Gramercy's an L.A. joint that aims for a New York Lower East Side vibe ... so they agreed it was the perfect spot for his art.