18-foot-tall troll in Austin lost to fire, Pease Park Conservancy says

AUSTIN, Texas -- The 18-foot-tall troll at Pease Park -- an art installation called Malin's Fountain from Danish artist Thomas Dambo -- has burned down, according to a news release from Pease Park Conservancy.

What happened

"The troll sculpture in Pease Park was lost to a fire early (Thursday) morning, and we are heartbroken alongside the community that cherished it," the news release states.

Austin Fire Department has responded, and it is an active investigation, according to the release. The fire's cause is currently not known.

Looking back

In March 2024, dozens of community members celebrated Malin the Troll's completion near the Pease Park Treehouse. Volunteers helped build the troll between March 1-15 that year.

Around 80% of Malin was built using found and repurposed material, including around 1,800 linear feet of eastern red cedar from a family-owned sawmill in Bastrop County for the internal structure. The exterior features repurposed wood from the J.J. Pickle Research Campus, according to previous Community Impact reporting.

Dambo designed Malin to hold a fountain that symbolizes the relationship between humans, animals, and the environment, and to symbolize that water should be shared with others.

Dambo quit his job in 2011 in pursuit of becoming an artist and has spent more than a decade making art out of discarded and recycled materials. In that time, he's built more than 100 trolls around the world, with Malin being his 129th, according to previous Community Impact reporting.

This article comes from our ABC13 partners at Community Impact Newspapers.