The mural was completed by artist Tomasz Miroszkin towards the end of October and has since caused a storm, with some declaring it a bona fide tourist attraction and others slamming it for intruding on nature.
Found in woodland close to the village of Marczyce, halfway between the city of Jelenia Góra and the Czech border, the installation has been defended by the artist.
Miroszkin underlined that he used non-toxic paints. Also free of allergens, the soluble paints will supposedly naturally wash away over time.
“The mural is no more harmful to nature than our own presence on the planet,” says the artist.
Not all have been convinced, however, with some accusing Miroszkin of “devastating the landscape” as well as setting a dangerous precedent.
“Soon imitators are going to start painting on other rocks or castle ruins,” railed one critic. “Nature is so beautiful it doesn’t need to be retouched,” wrote another.
Looking strikingly realistic, the giant skulls were painted onto boulders specially selected by Miroszkin for their shape.
Explaining his project, Miroszkin says that he had long harbored ambitions to create sculptures from boulders: “I’ve long wanted to carve something from rocks, but carving granite is physically very difficult,” he told the KarkonoszeGO portal.
“Instead, I decided to simulate a sculpture through painting—I wanted to create an effect in which the paints were barely visible.”
Informally christened the Hill of Skulls, Miroszkin’s work has delighted some, not least for its oblique reference to local culture—according to folklore, the nearby Giant Mountains were once inhabited by a bearded gentle giant called Krakonos.
“Not only does this form of art bring to life the legends of the Giant Mountains,” wrote a fan, “but it also makes us pause to reflect on the transience and power of the human imagination.”
However, now a new problem has reared its head to threaten the immediate future of the skulls. Having gained permission last year from the owner of the land to paint on the rocks, Miroszkin says that someone else has come forward claiming true proprietary rights.
“Perhaps the ‘first owner’ acted in good faith and just mistook the boundary of his plot,” Miroszkin wrote on social media.
Expanding on the resulting confusion, Miroszkin added: “I’m tired of this whole thing. The preparation and execution of the project took over a year, and during that time I had repeated assurances that everything was okay... But the person who represents ‘the [real] owner’ has a big grudge against me as he says too many people are now visiting the land.”
