Forest Lawn Cemetery - Glendale

Glendale, California, United States

Just a stone's throw from Hollywood is Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, which opened in 1906. It is the final resting place for hundreds of celebrities from Walt Disney to Sammy Davis Jr. The sprawling cemetery is also home to "Henry", a thirty-one inch Moai head from Easter Island. Although the figure hasn't been authenticated, it was obtained in 1954 by park founder Dr. Hubert Eaton who affectionately named it after his friend Henry Wendt. On a trip to Easter Island, so the story goes, Wendt and Eaton received the head in a legal transaction between Rapanui fishermen who were using it as ballast for a boat.

The In Search of Tiki exhibition was held at the Forest Lawn Glendale Museum from August 8th, 2009 to January 4th, 2010. The show was curated by Doug Nason and Jeff Fox, and featured traditional oceanic art, Polynesian pop, and modern Tiki art. The group exhibition included Josh Agle (SHAG) whose original acrylic on board painting In Search of Tiki was used as the name and advertising print for the show. Henry the Moai is portrayed on the far right of the painting.