Situated on the border between Poland and Slovakia the Tatras are the highest range in the Carpathians. The sharp, steep peaks and ridges form vast basins with beautiful, deep ponds. One of these is Morskie Oko, the largest lake in the Tatras, which is one of the main destinations for tourists visiting the region. In July this year alone, almost 132,000 people hiked the trail to witness the gem of the Polish mountains.

The trail leading to Morskie Oko measures almost 8 km. It can be covered on foot in about 2.5 hours or by horse-drawn transport. Horse-drawn carriages travel along a narrow paved road, which is physically demanding for the animals. On more than one occasion, there have been dramatic situations on the trail to the Morskie Oko Lake involving horses dying in front of tourists.

Horses are used in the Polish mountains not only on the route to Morskie Oko. They can be found harnessed to work in many other attractive tourist locations in Podhale, a region located at the foot of the Tatra Mountains.

The Viva! Foundation has been fighting for years to stop horse transport to the Morskie Oko Lake. Now activists chose an unusual way to publicise the problem of animal suffering. The foundation's online shop introduced charity clothing collection "Podhale’s Shame". Its designers are two artists, Matylda Sałajewska and Marta Woszczyna.

"We called the collection 'Podhale’s Shame', because forcing these animals to work beyond their strength is an absolutely disgraceful situation for the entire region. In fact, many Podhale residents agree with us on this issue. Of all the people only officials remain deaf to arguments about overloading the horses. And the leitmotif of the collection itself is not aggressive, although it bluntly shows the suffering of the horses, which is unfortunately a part of the Podhale tradition", explains Anna Płaszczyk of the Viva! Foundation.

Płaszczyk announced that the idea for the collection was inspired by appeals from tourists who planned to hike the route to Morskie Oko. They submitted a request for T-shirts that would help them manifest their outrage at the suffering of the horses.

"When looking for an idea for this collection, I started with research, which I always do. I was keen to find a good, provocative, but not shocking and blatant identification with the location of the route taken by the horses," says Matylda Sałajewska, co-author of the "Hańba Podhala" charity collection.

The artist wanted to convey an important message in a subtle way and make people aware of what they are participating in, namely the torture of animals.

The artists blame the authorities of the Tatra National Park for their inaction on the abuse of horses and point out that the procedure is not yet forbidden because it is profitable for everyone, just not for the horses.

The collection is in line with the beautiful and colourful Podhale design and the "tradition" of tormenting horses on the route to Morskie Oko. The patterns are colourful, floral, alluding to the art of Podhale. Only after a while does one notice what the design is really all about. And that is horse suffering.

In the Viva! Foundation's collection, a reference to local tradition is made in the form of scarves, which are one of the basic elements of the local traditional costume. They were the first to be created in the collection. They deconstruct the tradition of the Podhale region by inscribing the tormented horses into it.

Sweaters are also an important element of the collection. On one hand, they are another traditional garment in Podhale. On the other, they are a fashionable item of clothing that has resurfaced and excites the younger generation. "Podhale’s Shame" also includes t-shirts, socks, bags or backpacks. Part of the collection was based on embroidery, which is also an element of Podhale’s culture.

The collection is one of the elements of this year's campaign for the abolition of horse transport to the Morskie Oko Lake. Profits from the sale of the collection will contribute to the Viva! Foundation's Morskie Oko horse rescue campaign.

The main event of Viva!'s autumn campaign in support of the Morskie Oko horses will be the publication of a report on the situation of these animals, including the results of an investigation into the fate of the horses after their withdrawal from the route. The report will include data on the slaughter for meat of the Morskie Oko horses. The document is to be released on 15 September.