

Must Sees
Forest Giants in a Giant Forest
More Information
Know Before You GoAdmission:
Free. A donation of $15 is recommended per car for non-members.
Forest Giants Trail MapFor accessibility information about the Forest Giants Trail and all other trails, click here.
Plan Your Giant Adventure
In conjunction with our 90th anniversary in 2019, Bernheim welcomed Danish artist Thomas Dambo to construct three giant sculptures throughout the Arboretum using recycled wood from the region. Begin your journey at the Visitor Center and explore Forest Giants in a Giant Forest.
Story of the Giants
Dambo wrote a fairytale for the Giants called “While the Weather Got Better,” which gives a backstory to the family living in Bernheim. The “mother giant,” Mama Loumari, rests against a tree in the Bernheim Forest, expecting a baby while her two children, Little Nis and Little Elina, explore the forest.
The father, Isak Heartstone, is another of Dambo’s sculptures. The poem tells their story:
“His two beautiful children, little Elina and Nis/ And their mama Loumari, a hug and a kiss/ They spend the winter together while the weather got better/ Elina looked at the sky, from the sky fell a feather.”
The feather symbolizes “good luck” and a “fertile forest,” signs that Mama Loumari’s baby will soon arrive. At the end of winter, Heartstone must return to the mountains, bidding farewell to his family in the forest:
“I will be back again soon, he yelled, walking the prairie.”
From Thomas Dambo
“While the Weather Got Better”
It was a cold winter, but the snow felt warm
He woke up with eyes closed and heard himself yawn
His name was Isak Heartstone, on mountain top of them all
A name they gave him as small, now he was 36 feet tall
Still a young giant, only 700,051 years
Already a father to two, full of eyes, full of tears
Full of love he was, but felt alone on the mountain
He walked down to the forest, in the forest he found them
His two beautiful children, little Elina and Nis
And their mama Loumari, a hug and a kiss
They spend the winter together while the weather got better
Elina looked at the sky, from the sky fell a feather
It was a sign of good luck, and a fertile forest
Where every being had a place from the smallest to tallest
They made a circle of life, they would soon have a brother
It’s good luck for a baby, when it sleeps in the mother
Some of wood, some of stone, some of sun, some of seeds
Some of quarts, some of leaves and what fell from the trees
A dragon skull he found 200,000 years ago
It was a symbol of strength, so the baby would grow
But now the ice was melted and Isak looked to the mountain
He knew he had to go back and put his big arms around them
A hug and a kiss, Nis, Elina, Loumari
I will be back again soon, he yelled, walking the prairie
About the Artist
Thomas Dambo, based in Copenhagen, was inspired by the “potential in all the stuff that people threw out” as he grew up. After attending design school, he began creating unique sculptures from recycled materials. His work has been displayed worldwide, including dozens of “forest trolls,” hundreds of birdhouses, and interactive installations called “Happy Walls,” where wooden blocks can be rearranged to form murals. He also works on design projects like furniture and interior design, primarily made from recycled materials. One of his notable pieces, *Leo the Enlightened* (2018), is hidden in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.
Like many others, we were drawn here initially to see the Giants, wooden sculptures by Danish artist Thomas Dambo, but there is so much more to see!
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