Post #442167 by bigbrotiki on Tue, Mar 24, 2009 11:12 AM

On 2009-03-18 21:57, Zeta wrote:
I guess this is where he was buried...

before they moved him to his museum so thousands of tourists can visit his tomb...

This is confusing to me. I don't believe his remains were ever moved, but where is that tombstone from?

Here is another shot I took of his grave at the Altuona Cemetery, on a hilltop on the Marquesan island of Hiva Oa:

The statue on the grave is a replica of his ceramic sculpture called "Oviri":

Here is a reference to why it is on his grave, (quoting him before he decided to leave Tahiti):

Though he sometimes gave his human subjects Tiki-esque facial features...

(Tahitian Idol -Hina, woodcut, 1895)

...he was definitely more obsessed with the female form, as can be seen in his most famous wood carvings, the door boards to his studio on Hiva Oa, which he called his "House of Pleasure":

"Be mysterious..."

"Soyez amoureuses et vous serez heureuses" which can be tranlated into:
"Be in love and you will be happy".

Here is their complete set up:

Here is a sketch of his home on Hiva Oa, the studio was upstairs:

[ Edited by: bigbrotiki 2009-03-24 13:25 ]