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The '''''Fremont Troll''''' (also known as '''''The Troll''''', or the '''''Troll Under the Bridge''''') is a [[public art|public sculpture]] in the [[Fremont, Seattle, Washington|Fremont]] [[neighbourhood|neighborhood]] of [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]] in the United States. The Fremont Troll is an example of [[hostile architecture]], having been erected to deter homeless people |
The '''''Fremont Troll''''' (also known as '''''The Troll''''', or the '''''Troll Under the Bridge''''') is a [[public art|public sculpture]] in the [[Fremont, Seattle, Washington|Fremont]] [[neighbourhood|neighborhood]] of [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]] in the United States. The Fremont Troll is an example of [[hostile architecture]], having been erected to deter the presence of homeless people and antisocial behavior under the bridge after winning a competition held by the [[Fremont Arts Council]]. |
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==Description== |
==Description== |
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==History== |
==History== |
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[[File:Fremont Troll Information Plaque.jpg|thumb|Plaque for the sculpture]] |
[[File:Fremont Troll Information Plaque.jpg|thumb|Plaque for the sculpture]] |
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In 1990, the [[Fremont Arts Council]] launched an art competition |
In 1990, the [[Fremont Arts Council]] launched an art competition for the area under the bridge with the intent to construct [[hostile architecture]] to deter the presence of "rodents, mattresses, beer cans, [and] guys sleeping" there, believing that the solution to the issue was "having a piece of art" instead. The piece, built later that same year, easily won the competition, and was meant to become a cultural icon of the city from its conception.<ref name="ST1">{{cite news |last1=Lacitis |first1=Erik |title=Artist was trolling for icon status when he created Fremont Troll |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=20040530&slug=icontroll30 |work=Seattle Times |date=May 30, 2004}}</ref> The vote in favor of the "funky" troll was also motivated of concerns about increased development in Fremont, including numerous large apartment buildings and an office park, damaging the largely residential neighborhood's "historic character" at the time.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Nelson |first1=Robert T. |title=Stuff Of Legends: Fremont Erecting Funky Troll Sculpture |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=19900930&slug=1095924 |work=Seattle Times |date=September 30, 1990}}</ref> |
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The construction of the troll provoked immediate complaints from homeless people who previously lived under the bridge, and in 1991, just a year after it was erected, neighbors funded powerful floodlights to deter squatters and "late-night revelers" from acts of vandalism targeting the troll's beard and hair,<ref>{{cite news |title=Fremont Troll Gets The Light Of His Life |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=19910305&slug=1269886 |work=Seattle Times |date=March 5, 1991}}</ref> as well as the continued dumping of trash around it by homeless people who used to live there.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Henderson |first1=Diedtra |title=Hideous Times For Fremont Troll -- Vandals Damaging Under-Bridge Sculpture |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=19910222&slug=1267626 |work=Seattle Times |date=February 22, 1991}}</ref> Despite the intent of the arts council, the sculpture has periodically been the target of vandalism,<ref name="ST1" /> although local activists have made efforts to clean graffiti on a regular basis,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lacitis |first1=Erik |title=Painting over Seattle’s graffiti is a game of whack-a-mole. The taggers have won |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/painting-over-seattles-graffiti-is-a-game-of-whack-a-mole-the-taggers-have-won/ |work=Seattle Times |date=September 11, 2021}}</ref> and the city of Seattle has swept homeless encampments adjacent to the sculpture following repeated five drug overdoses in January 2019;<ref>{{cite news |last1=Davila |first1=Vianna |title=City removes homeless camp near Seattle’s Fremont Troll that was site of overdoses |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/homeless/city-removes-homeless-camp-near-seattles-fremont-troll-that-was-site-of-overdoses/ |work=Seattle Times |date=March 23, 2019}}</ref> from January to mid-May alone, the city received 28 complaints about needles or homelessness within a block of the sculpture.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Boiko-Weyrauch |first1=Anna |title=Photos of ‘needles’ sent to Seattle’s Find It Fix It app. (Spoiler: many aren't needles) |url=https://www.kuow.org/stories/i-looked-at-1-000-photos-tagged-needles-in-seattle-many-of-them-showed-something-else |work=KUOW |date=August 7, 2019}}</ref> |
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In 2005, the segment of Aurora Avenue North under the bridge, running downhill from the Troll to North 34th Street was renamed "Troll Avenue" in honor of the sculpture.<ref name="seattle_times">{{cite news |title=Street may be rechristened for Fremont Troll |first=Susan |last=Gilmore |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002370236_troll09m.html |newspaper=[[The Seattle Times]] |publisher=Frank A. Blethen |location=[[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]] |issn=0745-9696 |oclc=9198928 |date=July 9, 2005 |access-date=March 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090919032501/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002370236_troll09m.html |archive-date=2009-09-19 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2011 the Fremont Arts Council licensed a [[Chia Pet]] based on the Fremont Troll that was sold at a local drug store chain.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/2011/10/18/the-fremont-troll-becomes-a-chia-pet/ |title=The Fremont Troll becomes a Chia pet |date=2011-10-19|work=Seattle's Big Blog |access-date=2018-03-03 |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2016, the Chicago rock band Majungas released "The Fremont Troll" off their Seattle Rock album.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Harms |first1=Shane |title=Chicago band releases songs inspired by Ballard and Fremont |url=http://www.ballardnewstribune.com/2016/04/19/news/chicago-band-releases-songs-inspired-ballard-and|agency=Ballard News Tribune |date=April 19, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Kirby |first1=Lindsay |title=Majungas Sing A Song For The Fremont Troll |url=http://fremocentrist.com/news/?p=8200|website=www.fremocentrist.com|access-date=May 7, 2016}}</ref> Starting in 2017, the seventh season of ''[[Once Upon a Time (TV series)|Once Upon a Time]]'' heavily featured a replica of the troll, providing it a backstory that includes references to the book "[[The BFG]]".<ref>{{Citation |title=Once Upon a Time Builds Fun Lore Around a Seattle Landmark |first=Nick |last=Mangione |date=March 24, 2018 |website=[[Geek.com]] |url=https://www.geek.com/television/once-upon-a-time-builds-fun-lore-around-a-seattle-landmark-1734903/ |access-date=August 2, 2019 |archive-date=August 2, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190802194414/https://www.geek.com/television/once-upon-a-time-builds-fun-lore-around-a-seattle-landmark-1734903/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> |
In 2005, the segment of Aurora Avenue North under the bridge, running downhill from the Troll to North 34th Street was renamed "Troll Avenue" in honor of the sculpture.<ref name="seattle_times">{{cite news |title=Street may be rechristened for Fremont Troll |first=Susan |last=Gilmore |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002370236_troll09m.html |newspaper=[[The Seattle Times]] |publisher=Frank A. Blethen |location=[[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]] |issn=0745-9696 |oclc=9198928 |date=July 9, 2005 |access-date=March 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090919032501/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002370236_troll09m.html |archive-date=2009-09-19 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2011 the Fremont Arts Council licensed a [[Chia Pet]] based on the Fremont Troll that was sold at a local drug store chain.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/2011/10/18/the-fremont-troll-becomes-a-chia-pet/ |title=The Fremont Troll becomes a Chia pet |date=2011-10-19|work=Seattle's Big Blog |access-date=2018-03-03 |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2016, the Chicago rock band Majungas released "The Fremont Troll" off their Seattle Rock album.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Harms |first1=Shane |title=Chicago band releases songs inspired by Ballard and Fremont |url=http://www.ballardnewstribune.com/2016/04/19/news/chicago-band-releases-songs-inspired-ballard-and|agency=Ballard News Tribune |date=April 19, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Kirby |first1=Lindsay |title=Majungas Sing A Song For The Fremont Troll |url=http://fremocentrist.com/news/?p=8200|website=www.fremocentrist.com|access-date=May 7, 2016}}</ref> Starting in 2017, the seventh season of ''[[Once Upon a Time (TV series)|Once Upon a Time]]'' heavily featured a replica of the troll, providing it a backstory that includes references to the book "[[The BFG]]".<ref>{{Citation |title=Once Upon a Time Builds Fun Lore Around a Seattle Landmark |first=Nick |last=Mangione |date=March 24, 2018 |website=[[Geek.com]] |url=https://www.geek.com/television/once-upon-a-time-builds-fun-lore-around-a-seattle-landmark-1734903/ |access-date=August 2, 2019 |archive-date=August 2, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190802194414/https://www.geek.com/television/once-upon-a-time-builds-fun-lore-around-a-seattle-landmark-1734903/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> |
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| Fremont Troll | |
|---|---|
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| Artist | Steve Badanes Will Martin Donna Walter Ross Whitehead |
| Year | 1990 (1990) |
| Type | Sculpture |
| Dimensions | 5.5 m (18 ft) |
| Location | Seattle |
| Coordinates | 47°39′03″N 122°20′50″W / 47.650955°N 122.34728°W / 47.650955; -122.34728 (Fremont Troll) |
| Owner | City of Seattle |
The Fremont Troll (also known as The Troll, or the Troll Under the Bridge) is a public sculpture in the Fremont neighborhoodofSeattle, Washington in the United States. The Fremont Troll is an example of hostile architecture, having been erected to deter the presence of homeless people and antisocial behavior under the bridge after winning a competition held by the Fremont Arts Council.
The Troll is a mixed media colossal statue, located on N. 36th Street at Troll Avenue N., under the north end of the George Washington Memorial Bridge (also known as the Aurora Bridge). It is clutching an actual Volkswagen Beetle, as if it had just swiped it from the roadway above. The vehicle has a California license plate.[1] Originally, the car held a time capsule, including a plaster bust of Elvis Presley, which was stolen when the sculpture was vandalized.[2][3]
The Troll is 18 ft (5.5 m) high, weighs 13,000 lb (5,900 kg), and is made of steel rebar, wire, and concrete.[4]
The Troll was sculpted by four local artists: Steve Badanes, Will Martin, Donna Walter, and Ross Whitehead. The idea of a troll living under a bridge is derived from the Scandinavian (Norwegian) folklore.
The artists have copyright to the Troll images. They have sued businesses that use its image commercially without written permission.[5] Postcards, beer, and other products approved by the artists are commercially available, and use is free to non-profit organizations.[6]
In 1990, the Fremont Arts Council launched an art competition for the area under the bridge with the intent to construct hostile architecture to deter the presence of "rodents, mattresses, beer cans, [and] guys sleeping" there, believing that the solution to the issue was "having a piece of art" instead. The piece, built later that same year, easily won the competition, and was meant to become a cultural icon of the city from its conception.[7] The vote in favor of the "funky" troll was also motivated of concerns about increased development in Fremont, including numerous large apartment buildings and an office park, damaging the largely residential neighborhood's "historic character" at the time.[8]
The construction of the troll provoked immediate complaints from homeless people who previously lived under the bridge, and in 1991, just a year after it was erected, neighbors funded powerful floodlights to deter squatters and "late-night revelers" from acts of vandalism targeting the troll's beard and hair,[9] as well as the continued dumping of trash around it by homeless people who used to live there.[10] Despite the intent of the arts council, the sculpture has periodically been the target of vandalism,[7] although local activists have made efforts to clean graffiti on a regular basis,[11] and the city of Seattle has swept homeless encampments adjacent to the sculpture following repeated five drug overdoses in January 2019;[12] from January to mid-May alone, the city received 28 complaints about needles or homelessness within a block of the sculpture.[13]
In 2005, the segment of Aurora Avenue North under the bridge, running downhill from the Troll to North 34th Street was renamed "Troll Avenue" in honor of the sculpture.[14] In 2011 the Fremont Arts Council licensed a Chia Pet based on the Fremont Troll that was sold at a local drug store chain.[15] In 2016, the Chicago rock band Majungas released "The Fremont Troll" off their Seattle Rock album.[16][17] Starting in 2017, the seventh season of Once Upon a Time heavily featured a replica of the troll, providing it a backstory that includes references to the book "The BFG".[18]
In 2022, the Seattle Kraken introduced Buoy, a mascot said to be the Fremont Troll's nephew.[19]
