March 2025

February 2025

January 2025

Hidden Gems of Forest Lawn Museum

Nestled within the renowned and historic Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California, lies an unexpected treasure: the Forest Lawn Museum. While the cemetery itself is famously known as the final resting place for legendary figures like Walt Disney and Elizabeth Taylor, the museum offers an enriching experience that often goes unnoticed by many.

The Forest Lawn Museum, founded in 1957, has consistently provided visitors with a plethora of exhibitions that delve into a variety of subjects, from art and history to pop culture. Its mission is to keep the spirit of storytelling alive by showcasing compelling narratives through visual arts - making it not just a museum, but a captivating portal into differing worlds and epochs.

Longtime Pasadena Villager LuCinda Haagensen had attended numerous art exhibitions and museum open house events with fellow Villagers.  She was impressed with the quality and uniqueness of each exhibition featured at the Forest Lawn museum in Glendale, and was surprised that all events and exhibitions are completely free to the public. LuCinda stated, “I have brought groups to the free Glendale Forest Lawn Museum many times. They have several permanent exhibits including stained glass of the Last Supper and the hall of the Crucifixion not to be missed. Among the highlights we have seen “60 Years of Joy and Wonder - Bob Baker Marionettes”, “Light and Matter”,  and “Shaping Gravity”. This abstract art exhibit included a world premier of “Sounds of Color”. This was a fusion of abstract art, music and AI. Words cannot express how much everyone enjoyed this fantastic moment in time! I look forward to bring more groups to this treasured museum!"

The current exhibit — “Narcissus Quagliata: Archetypes and Visions in Light and Glass” is a retrospective exhibition devoted to an artist who is among the most influential figures in art glass from the past 50 years. From technical advances in glass fusing, to radical stylistic innovations, Narcissus Quagliata has redefined what it means to be a glass artist. He has been instrumental in moving stained glass beyond ecclesiastical and domestic settings and into the realms of public art and avant-garde studio practices for contemporary fine art.

The exhibition features artworks that span more than five decades, including fused glass work from the “Mediterranean Treasures” series, large-scale watercolors, and more. Works of art from his “Locked Out” series, which directly addresses issues of homelessness, are also featured in the exhibition. “Locked Out” humanizes the plight of people experiencing homelessness and individuals on the margins of society. The series is a continuation of the work he began in with Porca Miseria!/Damned Misery! (1987), which is on loan from the Oakland Museum of California for the exhibition.

There is a FREE Open House Event on March 8 from 2-4 PM at Forest Lawn Glendale.  It’s the closing reception for Narcissus Quagliata: Archetypes and Visions in Light and Glass.  You can meet the artist and curator for a Q&A and learn more about Narcissus Quagliata’s incredible career as a glass artist.  You can enjoy the free exhibition tours and refreshments and enter a raffle for a chance to win an autographed prize.