Marvin by Thomas Dambo, Clinton, Iowa, USA
Artwork FileClinton · Iowa
Still thereSep 2026
Marvin
under the oak
Thomas Dambo · The Tree Thieves · 2026
Image via Eastern Iowa Community Colleges
The youngest of three wooden troll brothers, built from Clinton’s own old wood. Free to visit, dawn to dusk.
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4 things to know
- He’s napping on purposeDambo asked if a troll could “lay and take a little nap up against that tree.” EICC, which runs the arboretum, has called the oak 200 years old. EICC
- Made of ClintonHis fur is old flooring from the Lodge at Eagle Point Park, his hair is branches from the city’s crews, and the lumber was milled by the Sawmill Museum. EICC
- Where the build beganWork started at the arboretum before spreading to the Sawmill Museum, and photos show Marvin finished by 20 April 2026. Clinton Herald (letter) · Quad-City Times
- The real thievesThe title points at the people who logged the northern forests and floated the timber to Clinton, not at the trolls. EICC
Check-in guide
- 📍
- Bickelhaupt Arboretum, 340 S 14th St, Clinton, Iowa.
- 🕒
- Dawn to dusk (Sawmill Museum), free (Downtown Clinton Alliance).
- 🚶
- From the south end of the parking lot, walk around the building and cross the bridge. O the Places We Go
- 🔎
- Find the symbol on his necklace. With the symbols of his two brothers it unlocks the hidden fourth work at trollmap.com. Downtown Clinton Alliance
Troll diary
- 2025Sep
Arboretum site in the news
- 202614 Apr
Being built
- 202620 Apr
Finished
- 202630 Apr
Unveiled
- 20261 May
Ribbon cutting
- 94K+Sep 2026
Visitors in 3 months (organizers)
- 202629 Sep
Still there
Every stamp links to the dated source.
On the record
Quad-City Times · photos by Katelyn Metzger29 April 2026
Photos: Dambo Troll sculptures are constructed in Clinton
“Kids play near the newly finished Dambo Troll, “Marvin,” at Bickelhaupt Arboretum on Monday, April 20, in Clinton.”
OurQuadCities / WHBF30 April 2026
Clinton Dambo Trolls revealed to public
“UPDATE: Clinton unveiled three tall wooden troll statues today.”
Eastern Iowa Community Colleges1 May 2026
Bickelhaupt Arboretum celebrates new center
“Marvin, one of the trolls, rests against a 200-year-old oak tree at the Arboretum”
Clinton Herald19 November 2025
CCDA announces fall grant awards
“the largest of 14 awards — $68,000 — going to the Sawmill Museum for the installation of a Thomas Dambo troll.”
EICC release · Quad-City Times10 September 2026
Bickelhaupt Arboretum honored with Grow Clinton innovation award
“At Bickelhaupt Arboretum, many of those visitors come looking for Marvin.”
The facts
- Artist
- Thomas Dambo, Danish recycling artist, Copenhagen Checked
- Title
- Marvin (Dambo’s site and film: Marwin) Conflicting
- Series
- The Tree Thieves: Warren, Helmut, Marvin + a hidden fourth work Checked
- Built
- April 2026; finished by 20 April, unveiled 30 April Checked
- Materials
- Reclaimed local wood Checked
- The oak
- About 200 years old Reported
- Visitors
- At least 94,000 in the first three months (organizer figure) Reported
- Status
- Standing; active on Trollmap, 29 September 2026 Checked
- Size
- Not published Unconfirmed
Help us finish this file
- Marvin’s length. No source gives it.
- How many volunteers helped: EICC says more than 100, Prairie Rivers of Iowa says over 1,000 signed up.
- Who took the EICC photo at the top of this page.
Know one of these, or have a dated photo? Leave a comment below.
Related
- On Street Art Utopia: Three Giant Trolls Followed Their Stolen Trees to Iowa (8 Photos) and Let the World Wait (8 Photos).
- His brothers: Helmut, nearly 14 feet tall, on Harding St two blocks north of the Sawmill Museum, and Warren, inside the old railroad freight house downtown. Shaw Local
- The Enchanted Branches: the hidden fourth work. Each troll wears a necklace with a symbol; entering all three at trollmap.com reveals where it is. OurQuadCities, Downtown Clinton Alliance
All sources (23)
Artist
- Thomas Dambo: “The Tree Thieves”. Names, poem, partners.
- Trollmap: location, status and photo.
Site and organizers
- Eastern Iowa Community Colleges: “The Troll Beneath the Tree”, 13 May 2026. Oak, materials, build, quotes.
- Eastern Iowa Community Colleges: “Bickelhaupt Arboretum celebrates new center”, 1 May 2026. 200-year-old oak.
- Bickelhaupt Arboretum: “Dambo Troll”.
- The Sawmill Museum: “Dambo Troll”. Locations and opening hours.
- Grow Clinton: “Experience the Thomas Dambo Trolls in Clinton”.
- Downtown Clinton Alliance: “Clinton Trolls”. Necklace symbols.
Local press
- Clinton Herald: “PROGRESS REPORT: Dambo trolls due in Clinton next year”, 25 September 2025.
- Clinton Herald: “CCDA announces fall grant awards”, 19 November 2025. (archived copy)
- Clinton Herald: “PROGRESS REPORT: Troll heads ready to be shipped”, 24 December 2025.
- Clinton Herald: “Trolls taking root”, 15 April 2026. (archived copy)
- KWQC: “Giant wooden troll sculptures take shape in Clinton”, 20 April 2026.
- Quad-City Times: “Photos: Dambo Troll sculptures are constructed in Clinton”, 29 April 2026. (archived copy)
- Iowa Public Radio: “Four giant, wooden trolls are waiting for you to find them in these Iowa locations”, 29 April 2026.
- OurQuadCities: “Clinton Dambo Trolls revealed to public”, 30 April 2026. Unveiling; Dambo on the necklaces.
- KROS Radio: “Ribbon Cutting Ceremony Marks Completion of Renovation”, 27 April 2026. (archived copy)
- Prairie Rivers of Iowa: “Dambo Trolls Arrive in Clinton”, 4 May 2026.
- Clinton Herald: “Letter of appreciation: Thank you, troll volunteers”, 17 May 2026.
- EICC release published by the Quad-City Times: “Bickelhaupt Arboretum honored with Grow Clinton innovation award”, 10 September 2026. At least 94,000 visitors. (archived copy)
- Shaw Local: “Day trip: Dambo trolls tell Clinton’s timber tales”, 22 September 2026. Funding, visitor numbers.
Video
- Eastern Iowa Community Colleges (YouTube): “Bickelhaupt Arboretum Troll | Interview with artist Thomas Dambo”, 14 May 2026.
- Thomas Dambo (YouTube): “The Tree Thieves”, 5 June 2026. Film by Ross Lippman.
Artwork File · Last checked 29 September 2026 · Certainty labels follow How We Verify Art · All Artwork Files