FOLLOWUP: West Seattle will meet its troll soon

That photo from Portland was shared by a WSB reader who was there last weekend as the first installation in the series Northwest Trolls: Way of the Bird King was unveiled. (The troll’s name is Olebolle.) As previewed here back in June, one of the other five trolls by Danish artist Thomas Dambo is being installed at West Seattle’s Lincoln Park. And work is under way, according to the readers who have deluged the WSB inbox with sightings. One of the volunteers working on the site sent this photo.

As explained in the original announcement, the trolls – like dozens Danbo has installed around the world – are being built with used/recycled materials – mostly wooden pallets. The West Seattle site is adorned with signs explaining what’s going on:

Despite this happening in a very public place, where hundreds if not thousands have seen it already, the privately funded project coordinated by the Scan Design Foundation is trying to keep a bit of mystery, so we’re not going to be the ones to spoil it for you – as the sign says, the “grand reveal” is just nine days away. As the construction continues, the volunteer who emailed us advises, “Follow the sound of power tools and hammers.” The other four, after ours and Portland’s, are planned for Ballard, Issaquah, and Vashon and Bainbridge Islands; the schedules are on the artist’s Instagram feed, including a peek at the one that’s almost complete on Bainbridge.

73 Replies to "FOLLOWUP: West Seattle will meet its troll soon"

  • LO August 16, 2023 (9:00 pm)

    Looks great so far! 

    • CAM August 18, 2023 (1:31 am)

      WSB, “No spoilers from us.” LO (in the first and unavoidable comment as you scroll), “Hold my drink please.”

  • Andee August 16, 2023 (9:04 pm)

    So excited!! 

  • Pelicans August 16, 2023 (9:07 pm)

    Will these trolls be temporary or permanent?

    • WSB August 16, 2023 (9:09 pm)

      Up to 3 years. Theoretically it will decompose in the elements.

      • Kyle August 16, 2023 (9:17 pm)

        Do they have a plan for cleanup if it doesn’t decompose by a certain date? I’m assuming it will begin to look very run down past a certain point of no care or maintenance.

        • Pete August 17, 2023 (7:55 am)

          I think it’ll look neat if it starts to get overgrown with moss and generally decrepit.Let our Troll age gracefully I say!

        • Christopher B. August 17, 2023 (8:00 am)

          Sadly, I expect the Seattle version of “decompose” means that in short order it will be graffitied, partially burned, and parts will be broken off and stolen.

      • Pelicans August 16, 2023 (9:26 pm)

        So it will look good for awhile, then be an eyesore in a beautiful park as it decomposes?

        • AO August 16, 2023 (10:26 pm)

          It’s art. The artist has intentionally designed it to decay. Pause a moment and consider… What statement is being made by that choice? Why do we celebrate composition but not decomposition? What’s the root of that instinct to prolong its existence? And then if you still need a permanent troll you can get one of those little ceramic guys for your garden. ;-)

    • Pelicans August 17, 2023 (12:26 am)

      Why not go to a little more effort to make this troll  last?  If it is left to  “decompose,” it will only become a target for taggers and vandalism, if not outright arson for a “beach fire.”  How about making an event and exhibition of taking it down, running it through a wood chipper and hauling it out to Cedar Grove?  This could be done to educate the public, including all the new arrivals to the PNW, on the benefits of composting.Apologize for the negativity,  but recent times have compelled me to remove my rose-colored glasses.  However beautiful and “whimsical” these wooden sculptures are,  they don’t belong on public property if they will not be maintained, either by the artist(s), or by Seattle Parks and Rec.  At the end of their original aesthetic condition, estimated at only three years, they should be disassembled by the artist(s) who placed them there, hauled away and recycled, if possible.  The natural decay of trees is one thing, as the ongoing educational exhibit in the Olympic Sculpture Park  shows,  but that of a man-made object in a beautiful city park is an unnecessary ugliness.

      • Felix Grounds August 17, 2023 (9:37 am)

        I am continually amazed at the ability of some West Seattle residents to ever more tightly clutch those pearls.There are not enough eye roll emojis to aptly punctuate tour comnent.It’s ART, and a major part of the concept of this installation IS the decomposition.Alternately, you can just not go look at it.

        • thx August 17, 2023 (12:54 pm)

          You worded my precise reaction perfectly. Thanks. 

      • Derp August 17, 2023 (10:05 am)

        It is a piece of art work that i am sure the artist has made this way because it is his art.  Here we have everyone telling how it needs to be. Can’t we just except it for what it is,  great art. If he wanted strain on it,  he would have done it.  If he wanted it to last,  he would have done it.But again people,  it is his art work. Be greatly that it is coming to the park. So much negativity for something so grand.  

        • JoSchmo August 17, 2023 (10:35 am)

          Here here. People sure enjoy trolling the troll. What a great gift to West Seattle. Oh and can I bring my unleashed dog with me to view the troll at the unveiling party? 🧌sheesh

        • 2 Much Whine August 18, 2023 (10:37 am)

          Derp, remember that you are only noticing a couple posts from a couple disgruntled residents that are trying to dominate the thread.  Your statement that “everyone” is telling the artist how it is supposed to be is way off base.  There are a couple outspoken critics – many of the others that think it’s cool either keep scrolling without comment or simply post “so cool,” “very excited,” and “can’t wait.”  West Seattle is filled with all kinds of people – ignore the ones that make you upset.  Here I am telling you what to do but I guess my point is that we can choose which voices to listen to. By the way, I do agree with you that we should let the artist be an artist.

      • Pelicans August 18, 2023 (7:03 am)

        Read my above comment all the way through. It is not “pearl clutching.” It offers a solution.

        • Felix Grounds August 18, 2023 (8:46 pm)

          A “solution” to a problem that does not exist.

  • sbre August 16, 2023 (9:18 pm)

    So cool!!!!

  • Alki resident August 16, 2023 (9:37 pm)

    Why go through all of this work and watch it decompose? Put stain on it it and costing to preserve it. 

    • SlimJim August 17, 2023 (9:13 am)
      • Maybe because stains are toxic and part of the idea behind the artwork is to keep it healthy and natural? Just my thought based on what I read. I may be wrong.
    • m August 17, 2023 (12:34 pm)

      There are sand artists from all over the world who painstakingly and lovingly spend hours creating intricate, complex sand sculptures on beaches knowing that the tide will eventually come in and wash them all away. It’s a beautiful intersection of art in the natural world, and a wonderful practice of detachment. 

    • datamuse August 17, 2023 (1:46 pm)

      It’s a deliberate decision on the part of the artist, why do you think they might have chosen to do it that way?

  • Olivia August 16, 2023 (9:46 pm)

    Aww it’s so cute , very excited! 

  • M August 16, 2023 (10:44 pm)

    Very excited for temporary art work intended to decompose. I appreciate the intentionality.

    • Pelicans August 17, 2023 (12:54 am)

      Really?  Enough of what we see around us is decaying.  Why make “intentionality” a thing?

      • Felix Grounds August 17, 2023 (9:44 am)

        Um….”intentionality” IS a thing already, and has been for like… forever.

  • Molly August 16, 2023 (10:55 pm)

    This is being built by Colman Pool. It is an unfortunate choice of location to put it for small kids who don’t like to be freaked out by giant, make believe fairy tale creatures that don’t naturally occur in forest preserves.How do privately funded art installations get greenlit in Seattle? Is it by the arts commission or is it part of the parks and rec long term plans? Curious for sure. 

    • andreea August 17, 2023 (9:40 am)

      Ha! Who’s gonna tell Santa, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, and God?

      • Ellie August 17, 2023 (6:33 pm)

        You are my hero, Andreea! This comment wins the internet today.

    • WS Res August 17, 2023 (9:43 am)

      Wow, the commenters on this blog can find the negative in anything with a quickness, but I did NOT have money on “think of the CHILDREN” as a complaint about this one.

    • anonyme August 17, 2023 (10:27 am)

      Or maybe the kids will be filled with wonder, amazement, and delight.  Imagine that.  My only worry would be them wanting to climb on it.

    • Vanessa August 17, 2023 (11:45 am)

      Wow,really?

    • Anne August 17, 2023 (3:33 pm)

      You can’t possibly be serious! Best stay far far away from Fremont then. 

    • BDSW August 17, 2023 (7:15 pm)

      But what if the intentional decay causes it to fall and injure one of THE CHLDREN?   Thanks to the crew and volunteers bringing this to our community. in the heat.

    • H August 18, 2023 (11:25 am)

      I think it is an awesome location for maximum enjoyment, though I’d guess the salt air might cause it to decay more quickly. Fwiw, my small kids have LOVED playing on and near one of these trolls in another US location for several summers. They will be thrilled to find one right in their backyard!! I feel very lucky to have one in West Seattle.

    • Cduncan August 20, 2023 (8:26 am)

      I know a lot of people are excited about this but I agree w you. How did this come about?  Why are we getting a troll?  

  • anonyme August 17, 2023 (5:56 am)

    This will be fabulous to see – the best thing that’s happened around here for ages.  My worry is not that the troll will decompose, but that it will be vandalized, or used as a free source of firewood by illegal campers or unscrupulous neighbors.

    • MarkO August 24, 2023 (8:50 pm)

      I worry also that this sculpture will be defaced by graffiti “artists”.   Small people with big egos needing pumping by creating ugliness for all to see….

  • zed August 17, 2023 (8:11 am)

    it will become a “attractive nuisance” like all the other wooden structures on the beach there….

  • Denden August 17, 2023 (8:59 am)

    Someone will set it on fire long before it decomposes. Looks great though. 

    • Hippy206 August 17, 2023 (10:39 am)

      There is a festival that got started in San Francisco by bringing a wooden sculpture down to the beach and doing the same thing. I think they had to move it to the desert in Nevada because there’s over 70,000 people that attend now every year. Can’t remember what it’s called.

      • WSB August 17, 2023 (11:31 am)

        You’re probably referring to Burning Man.

        • Josh August 17, 2023 (3:21 pm)

          Tracy you wonderful  earnest human, they were being facetious in not remembering the name of that festival where they burn that statue of that man. 

    • MW August 18, 2023 (11:18 am)

      Someone? Do you mean someone who thinks like an arsonist? Huh. 

  • WSSpartan August 17, 2023 (9:54 am)

    The amount of negativity and pearl clutching in these comments is absurd. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised though as an avid reader of the comments in WSB. The troll will scare children! It’s going to get burned down! Decomposing wood! Not in Seattle, oh my! I will never understand the desire to point out the negative in all situations…which I am admittedly doing now. Oh well.

    • datamuse August 17, 2023 (1:48 pm)

      I’m really hoping the one about scaring children wasn’t serious, but I’m not optimistic.

  • April August 17, 2023 (10:01 am)

    Cant wait! So excited for this! Makes me happy that it can decompose into nature! 

  • SpeakforTrees August 17, 2023 (10:15 am)

    Instead of funding a sculpture it would be great if Parks Dept actually announced a plan to keep the trees at Lincoln Park thriving. In the last three,  the number of trees downed by weather or disease seems to have risen significantly. No coincidence that the number of off the trail trails that have appeared around them has also increased. Instead of helping the trees they’re just inviting more people, in the thousands,  to trample through. It’s irresponsible

    • WSB August 17, 2023 (2:50 pm)

      As reported, in our original story and this one, the funding is private. Also, if it helps alleviate your last concern, this is along one of the park’s paved pathways, so hopefully no tree-trampling with result.

    • Bob August 17, 2023 (5:40 pm)

      Well, since it’s purchase, Lincoln has been a public park, first and foremost. The coast is part of a marine preserve aimed at limiting harvesting of marine resources, true, but the park itself is designated by the USGS gap analysis project as a local park, rather than conservation area (like the Longfellow Creek Greenspace). Additionally, Lincoln does not have the same local preservation policy that Schmitz has (applied in 1949, reaffirmed in 1953). Lastly, the parks department overtly classifies Lincoln as a multi-purpose park – rather than a natural area park, such as Discovery – and there is nothing in the municipal code (that I was able to find, admittedly) that denotes illegality around deviating from trails in city of Seattle parks.

      All that to say, I’m not sure why attracting more people to our public parks is a bad thing in any way, other than that it ruffles the feathers of those who would prefer that Lincoln was actually a legally protected area forever in stasis.

  • Kersti Elisabeth Muul August 17, 2023 (2:49 pm)

    In other non negative news, it will be playing a flute, to call the whales in 🪈🐳🐋

    • D August 19, 2023 (7:24 am)

      And the flute is beautiful with a shape reminiscent of a whale 🐋 

  • Sculpture August 17, 2023 (3:00 pm)

    Happy to see this fun sculpture too!!!!!  Thank you 👍🤩

  • sam-c August 17, 2023 (3:22 pm)

    I’m looking forward to seeing it, when it’s complete.  Feel so lucky that the artist chose Lincoln Park for a troll location.  

  • MB August 17, 2023 (3:37 pm)

    We are so lucky to have this in Lincoln Park!  Thank you!

  • Suzanne August 17, 2023 (4:17 pm)

    Wow. The positive thing about all these ridiculous negative comments is that they really made me laugh. 

  • LivesInWS August 17, 2023 (6:30 pm)

    That’s not going to decompose in 3 years. Wood pallets can last 10-15 yrs. 

    • 2 Much Whine August 18, 2023 (10:45 am)

      Wood pallets may last 10-15 years but trolls decompose in three.  This is not a pallet – it’s a troll.

  • snowskier August 18, 2023 (10:03 am)

    We checked it out last night and are excited to see it come to completion then watch as it weathers and the wood gathers moss and a hat of fallen maple leaves as it slowly sinks back into the woods.

  • MW August 18, 2023 (11:14 am)

    Comment section has given me life today. Thank you, just thank you… Dont forget if you look at or touch a troll with mean inent, you will lose whatever mind game you play in your head. However, if you do nice things like leave flowers, you heart may actually soften. (Insert winking face emoji followed by three laughing face emojis)

  • anonyme August 18, 2023 (1:31 pm)

    It brings a tear to my eye and hope to my hardened old heart that there are still a few souls out there who cherish having a bit of magic in their lives.

  • John August 19, 2023 (12:20 pm)

    Public art is a gift to all of
    us, whether we understand it (or not), like it (or not) or agree with it. It’s about aesthetic, creativity, imagination and
    possibilities. And for our troll project in particular, it created opportunities
    for the folks who participated to be part of a pop-up community coming together
    to create, while making connections with the artists, the work, the environment
    and each other. I will include this experience in my obit, when the time comes!For those of you choosing to ignore the many, many positives
    associated with public art, the world has lots of positives and lots of negatives.
    If you focus on the negatives, all you’ll ever see are the negatives. And you’ll miss the beauty surrounding us.

  • Kay Kole Leary August 20, 2023 (8:52 am)

    One of our troll’s Danish cousins on an island near Aalborg, Denmark.

  • Coincidental August 20, 2023 (8:54 am)

    Recently got to see the Copenhagen Troll, Green George, just a few days ago and didn’t make the connection it is of the same type made by the same artist.. West Seattle is getting a gem, I feel so fortunate we were chosen for a location!

  • Trevor F August 20, 2023 (3:30 pm)

    As a moldy old troll, I support the creation of more moldy old trolls.Big thanks to the artists and volunteers making this happen, especially in heat and wildfire smoke.

  • Rod S. August 21, 2023 (9:56 am)

    TROLL!  A hearty round of applause to the builders, artist and art appreciators among us. 

  • Lori August 21, 2023 (10:47 am)

    Does anyone know what time on Friday?

    • TMT August 22, 2023 (10:42 pm)

      4 pm

  • Greystreet August 25, 2023 (6:52 am)

    The only disappointing thing about this entire post is that I knew when I read the headline the ire that would follow from the WS community. Can this great community ever just let something be as it is without throwing the book at it from every angle? I have lived in this ‘hood for almost 15 years and every year the disdain expressed by community members on this blog becomes harder and harder to stomach. I’ll wait for the “You can leave whenever you want” crowd or the “I’m entitled to my opinion” crowd; YES, and…how about just letting ART be ART as others have said above. What a super cool piece of sculpture with a unique installation that is designed to decay and decompose. Everyone needs to take off their armchair expert hat and just take a deep breath and enjoy their surroundings for a little bit, geez. 

  • WSB August 25, 2023 (11:44 am)

    And for the record, we’re just back from an interview with the artist in advance of today’s “unveiling.” (They’re still working on the troll up to the very last minute.) He says he doesn’t know how that got started – “everyone always asks me that” – but NO, the trolls are not left to “decompose.” The site hosts decide when to remove them, and recycle the materials. – TR

  • Pam August 25, 2023 (1:41 pm)

    Thanks Tracy – I’m glad for the reminder.  I plan to be there and to enjoy it as long as it lasts!  Happy to have her (or him) in my neighborhood!

Sorry, comment time is over.