Save the Humans
Trash Trolls
Fioli Gardens
Ongoing – November 10
Fiolo Troll
Save the Humans features six Activist-Trolls that have come to teach humans how to rediscover nature and inspire humans to be good stewards of the earth.
This all-new touring exhibition features Thomas Dambo’s signature Sandinavian-folklore-inspired Troll sculptures. A Danish artist, Dambo builds his Trolls from reclaimed materials to urge us to be good neighbors to those with whom we share the planet. This outdoor exhibition fuses fairytales, whimsy, and monumental scale to inspire visitors to explore themes such as recycling and reusing trash, the importance of plants and gardens, art, and more.
TROLLS ACROSS AMERICA
With the six Trolls at Fioli, California is home to the largest collection of Trolls in one state. After seeing the Fioli trolls, if you yearn for more, there is some good news. There are six more Trolls nearby in the Pacific Northwest, one in Portland and another five in Washington state.
If you become obsessed with Dambo’s Trolls, you can use his map to uncover all 40 Trolls now installed in 21 states throughout the US.
TROLLS ACROSS THE WORLD
Dambo started his Trail of a Thousand Trolls twelve years ago. Working with a team, he has created 170 Troll sculptures from discarded materials such as wooden pallets, old furniture and wine barrels. Each year, Dambo and his team make about 25 new trolls, which stand up to 40 feet tall.
His ultimate goal is the placement of Trolls on every continent. (Really? Trolls in Antarctica?) Currently, he has Trolls on five continents: North and South America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. For Dambo’s TrollMap, click here.
Dambo’s Trolls each have their own personality and story. At Filoli, the Troll Ibbi Pip builds birdhouses, Rosa Sunfinger plants flowers and Kamma Can makes jewelry from people’s garbage. “Each of them has a story to tell,” said Filoli CEO Kara Newport. “It inspires people to think of their own stories, what kind of creatures might live in their woods and make that connection to living beings in nature.”
These mythological creatures live for thousands of years and they have seen just how destructive humans can be with our plunder of natural resources and our pollution fallout spreading across the planet. However, the six Trolls at Fioli are young and believe they can teach humans how to protect the planet.
Dambo explains, “They want to save the humans. So they do this by teaching them how to be better humans — be humans that don’t destroy nature.” It’s a message we need to take to heart. Otherwise, Dambo warns our fate is sealed. Continue to pollute and expect to be “…eaten by the older trolls.”
For more information about Fioli’s Trolls, click here.
My thanks to Terry Chea, KQED/AP
