Knud "Ken" Arensbak (1923–1997) was a Danish-born lithographer and artist who, along with his wife Neta (born Agnete), is best known for making fanciful handcrafted figures of trolls in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee, United States.
The family still operates 5 Arts Studio, which makes and sells Arensbak trolls to collectors all over the world.
Arensbak and his wife moved from post-war Denmark to Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1949.
Ken's first love was painting, though, and so that he might have more time to pursue his passion, during the 1960s his wife and children took up the job of making trolls to sell in the local shops.
The trolls are made from tree trunk bases that are covered in natural fiber with jute mustaches and eyebrows.