Exhibiting Now at the South Coast Botanic Garden
The trolls are finally here! The exhibit is available to see from now until January 14, 2024 here in Los Angeles and it is quite a sight to behold. We spent about 2 hours admiring these massive works of art during our walk around the gardens and had a blast!
This exhibit features six larger-than-life troll sculptures, each a testament to the artist's mastery of transforming reclaimed materials into captivating works of art.
The Visionary Recycle Artist
At the heart of these wild creations is Thomas Dambo, recognized as the world's most well established recycle artist. Having a great appreciation for recycling and sustainability from a young age, Dambo's journey has been a wild ride of creativity expressed through music, street art, and scenic design.
Having a master's degree in interactive design from the Kolding Design School, Dambo's path into using recycled materials has yielded awe-inspiring installations that capture the imagination of audiences worldwide.
I had a conversation with a man working at the entrance of the exhibition, and he mentioned that Dambo has created approximately 125 of these enormous sculptures. That is quite an achievement in my eyes!
I can't help but wonder how much time it must take him to finish just one! It appears to be quite a significant undertaking, but clearly a very worthwhile one.
Dambo's Artistic Philosophy
Dambo's art journey started with a love for recycling and a knack for turning trash into awesome art. He grew up in Denmark, surrounded by beautiful landscapes, and that really set the stage for his later projects, where nature and eco-friendliness are big players.
At the heart of his way of doing things is a dedication to sustainability and being eco-conscious. His creations aren't just eye candy; they also shout out a strong message about why recycling and reusing stuff matter. Dambo's all about using recycled materials, often picked up from local spots, proving that you can mix creativity with being environmentally responsible.
Looking closely at the sculptures, you can start to make out and guess a lot of the materials that he used. I am not certain, but I felt pretty confident that there are quite a few old pallets being used. I also noticed that the hands and feet often have a varnished side, that to me looks like it was taken from planks of wood taken from a ship or old boat. It's kind of fun looking over the trolls and trying to figure out from what the wood was originally sourced.
The Kids Love It!
As expected, the kids running around the gardens were absolutely astounded by the sheer size of the trolls. I've never seen @little-ricky so excited. At this point, the only things that he cares about are Halloween, monsters, vampires, ghosts, anything scary, and magical creatures. So, this exhibit was right up his alley!
As mentioned earlier, there are a total of six giant trolls in the exhibit, and they are spread out around the park. So, if you have a little one, it is worth bringing a stroller as they will get tired easily, and you'll end up having to carry them around under the hot sun, which is not a lot of fun.
Every time we arrived at a new troll, it took everything that I had to keep him from climbing on it. The other parents were having the same issue! After all, it certainly looks as if it wants to be climbed. The hardest part is getting your kid to want to leave one troll so that they can go see the next one!
Don't Miss Out
If you are in the LA area, I would highly recommend stopping in and checking out the exhibit. We will probably be going several times before it ends in January being that we are already members at the Botanic Garden. This has turned out to be a really good investment for us, since they've been putting in amazing exhibits quite regularly over the past couple of years. This one is certainly worth seeing up close!
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