Meet Rita, the Troll

tanjabrittonwriter 51 Comments

The last time I checked, Colorado was not considered a Nordic country. Yet rumor has it that our state has become home to a pair of trolls, those mythic beings of Norse mythology. Though many of the fabled trolls are considered mischievous or even maleficent, some have been known to be benign and beneficent, and such is the case with our two Rocky Mountain trolls.

I have not yet made the acquaintance of the first troll to establish his gentle reign in the state. Isak Heartstone was born in 2018 during the Breckenridge International Festival of Arts. At his first location, he received so many visitors that disrupted the residents’ routines that he needed to be moved to a new home at the outskirts of town, where he continues to attract attention and acclaim. Breckenridge is more than a stone’s throw away from us and even though I have been toying with the idea of paying him a visit, have not yet done so (click here for photos of and information about him).

Isak’s popularity attracted a second troll to Colorado in the summer of 2023, and even though it took me a year to visit, I’m glad to have finally managed to. Rita the Rock Planter established residence not too far from Colorado Springs, between the old mining towns of Victor and Cripple Creek, in neighboring Teller County (technically, it’s Victor that lays claim to her). In mid-October, my husband and I spent a couple of days in the area to enjoy the final stretch of aspenglow and to meet Rita.

Turning off Colorado Highway 67, the road that connects the two towns, one can park either at the bottom of a knoll and walk ¾ to 1 mile uphill, or drive up a gravel road and park in a second parking lot that is, at most, ¼ mile away from the destination. At a gate, one is greeted by a sign with the following words:

100 Suns—that is how long a

nap is for a Troll.

When Rita woke, her

mountainside had grown a hole!

The humans must have dug them

in search for shiny rocks

Someone could fall in, so Rita

went to tidy up.

While following a narrow footpath slightly downhill, Rita’s enclosure comes into view and soon one reaches ravishing Rita herself. Both Rita and Isak exemplify what loveliness can result from recycling. Both have the same father, Thomas Dumbo, who has called himself the “dedicated dumpster diver from Denmark.”

From the artist’s webpage comes the following statement:

I’m Thomas Dambo, Danish recycling artist. Our world is drowning in trash while we are running out of natural resources. In 2011 I quit my job to become an artist and follow my mission to ‘Waste no more’.

Today, I spend my life showing the world that beautiful things can be made out of trash. I give new life to discarded materials by turning them into large-scale artworks. My journey has led me to create artworks in 20 countries across five continents, including my giant Trolls [153 thus far], plastic works, birdhouses, and Happy Wall exhibitions. All these projects are realized using hundreds of tons of recycled materials, working in and with local communities, who are co-creators of the art that I make because the mission I follow needs the involvement of everybody. I also host talks as a speaker, such as TEDx talk, and sometimes I host workshops to teach people how to reuse and upcycle.

To enlarge a photo, click on it. 

Once we are close enough, we admire Rita’s sturdy body, her friendly face, and her warm smile. We take note of her strong arms and legs, solid hands and feet, sinuous finger- and toenails. Of her deft hands that are in the process of re-filling a hole, the hole created by the digging for precious metals that has been the raison d’être of both Cripple Creek and Victor since the discovery of gold in 1891.

Mining has been going on intermittently in the area since then, as countless residual mine shafts and mine tailings attest. Subterranean hard rock mining and subsequent milling gave way in time to heap leach mining (aka heap leaching), which extracts precious metals on site with the help of toxic chemicals, such as cyanide. In the background of Rita—and in juxtaposition—the telltale signs of this kind of ongoing mining are visible in the layered tiers that represent only the western wall of an area that covers at least seven square miles.

🌎🌍🌎🌍🌎🌍🌎🌍🌎🌍🌎🌍🌎

It will take many Ritas to refill all the holes we have dug in our unending quest to extract precious metals, or fossil fuels. To undo all the attendant damage, it will take all of our hands working together to restore the earth.

51 thoughts on “Meet Rita, the Troll”

  6. I love those Dumbo sculptures. We unexpectedly came across one in Minnesota in September.

    Somewhere along the last 55 years of dealing with health issues, we realized it wasn’t just medicines – everything has a side effect. Computers, laptops, phones and indeed the photos above would not have been possible if someone hadn’t made those holes in the earth. Now the trick is to minimize the side effects as we go forward.

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    • What a nice surprise to happen across one of Mr. Dumbo’s sculptures.

      You are absolutely right about everything having side effects, or unintended consequences. Each one of us carries some responsibility for the shape the world is in, especially if we live in wasteful societies. And while we know at least some remedies, I’m afraid not enough is being done to change the trajectory we are on.

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  9. A few hours after reading this post I came across a passage from the 16th-century English theologian Richard Hooker that seems in harmony with your final paragraph:

    “If the world should lose her qualities. If the celestial spheres should forget their wonted motions. If nature should intermit her course and leave altogether the observations of her own laws. If the moon should wander from her beaten way, the times and seasons blend themselves by disordered and confused mixture, what shall become of man who sees not plainly that obedience unto the law of nature is the stay of the whole world?”

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  10. The thought of a helpful, beneficent troll is pleasing; Rita certainly is that. I keep intending to photograph a shark on Galveston Island made from beach trash. The message is somewhat different, but certainly related. One sculpture says “Pick up your trash,” while Rita says “Don’t trash the earth.”

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    • Thank you, Linda. A sculpture on an island made from beach trash makes me think of the floating islands of plastic in the world’s oceans. And that makes me cry because we know what that does to so many innocent creatures. We definitely need to change our ways.

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  14. What a beautiful poem by Thomas Dambo. I love the highly detailed images of her hands and feet as she’s kneeling down to heal the earth. Dambo also has work in Puerto Rico. Thanks for sharing his work!

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  16. The trolls in your state are busy cleaning up the mess that the miners have left behind. Your photos of these friendly Nordic creatures help create awareness of our environment’s sorry state and encourage us to join the trolls in their worthwhile efforts, Tanja.

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  17. That is a Whole Lotta R[ita] ha. Very artistic impression with an interesting message. Not sure if the message is to stop making holes or to make sure we fill them back up. Can’t wait to see what the other one looks like once you make your way there. Oddly enough we almost bought a house in Breckinridge when we were a young couple to use as rental income. Didn’t get around to pulling the trigger – probably for the best as the economy was like a rollercoaster over the years. Always something interesting to see when I finally make it here Tanja.

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  19. Liebe Tanja, vielen Dank für deinen interessanten Artikel und die wunderbaren Fotos dazu. Es stimmt, Colorado ist zwar kein nordisches Land, aber die Idee von Trollen in den Rocky Mountains klingt wirklich faszinierend. Ich habe schon des öfteren Urlaub in Skandinavien gemacht, insbesondere in Norwegen und Island, und dort bin ich verschiedenen Arten von Trollen begegnet – sowohl in Geschichten als auch in der beeindruckenden Natur ( nunja, direkt von Angesicht zu Angesicht gesehen habe ich sie nicht, aber man konnte beeindruckende Auswirkungen sehen, die den Trollen zugeschrieben werden).

    Die Geschichte der Trolle ist wirklich spannend! In der nordischen Mythologie werden sie oft als große, ungeschlachte Wesen dargestellt, die in den Bergen oder Wäldern leben. Während viele Geschichten sie als schelmisch oder sogar bösartig beschreiben, gibt es auch die freundlicheren Trolle, die den Menschen helfen oder sie beschützen. Besonders in Island gibt es viele Legenden über „Huldufólk“ (versteckte Menschen), die eng mit der Troll-Mythologie verbunden sind.

    Es ist schön zu hören, dass deine Rocky Mountain-Trolle eine wohlwollende Art haben! Vielleicht wirst du mal einem von ihnen begegnen und kannst herausfinden, ob sie dir ein wenig ihrer magischen Energie schenken können.

    Liebe Grüße von Rosie

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    • Liebe Rosie,
      es stimmt, daß es eine nette Vorstellung ist, daß Trolle auch die Rocky Mountains heimsuchen können, besonders wenn sie so fürsorglich sind wie Rita und Isak. Mögen Ihre Botschaften in die Realität umgesetzt werden.
      Trollige Grüße,
      Tanja

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  21. Wow, this is fabulous (in both senses of the word). I love it. It’s a great piece of art in its own right, with an important underlying message about the folly trashing the planet in search of shiny metal. Kudos to the artist for recycling trash into art.

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  22. I have never heard about this artist and his creations. Truly both “art for art’s sake” and art with a purpose as well! A very thought provoking and uplifting post for a down sort of day….I especially love Rita’s face.
    Wishing you as many uplifting moments as possible these days,
    Julie

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    • Thank you for the good wishes, Julie, which I would like to return to you.
      I love Rita and am sure I would also love the other trolls. Each one is unique and has its unique message, and all messages are related to how to be better citizens of earth. More power to them!
      All the best,
      Tanja

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