Making waves! Gigantic lady of the lake who's got the Germans in a lather

Last updated at 1:59 PM on 4th August 2011

Meet the not-so-Little Mermaid that has been having a right old knees-up in the German city of Hamburg.

Oliver Voss's floating sculpture is designed to look like a woman bathing in the picturesque Alster Lake.

The three-piece work of art, which is 13ft high and 98ft long, will be turning heads for the next ten days - with many visitors boarding rowing boats to get a closer look.

Lady of the lake: The giant 'mermaid' will be on show at the Alster Lake in Hamburg for the next ten days

Controversial: District mayor Markus Schreiber has said that the giant 'mermaid' was 'sullying the beloved lake'

Controversial: District mayor Markus Schreiber has said that the sculpture was 'sullying the beloved lake'

Voss, head of the advertising academy Miami Ad School, said he wanted the aquatic sculpture, called The Bather, to be 'a topic of conversation in Germany'.

But his creation has also caused controversy, with district mayor Markus Schreiber telling de Bild newspaper that it was 'sullying the beloved lake'.

The enormous sculpture, made from steel and styrofoam, does not resemble a traditional mermaid.

Instead of a woman with a fishtail, Voss's lady of the lake has legs bent at the knee and protruding from the water.