Pensive Beauty
Forest Lawn Cemetery
To mark Forest Lawn Cemetery’s 175th anniversary, White Bicycle collaborated with the Forest Lawn Cemetery team to design Pensive Beauty—a 200-page case bound publication that blends historical narrative and pictorial storytelling into a richly layered visual and literary experience. With writing by Melissa Banta and photography by Andy Olenick, the book invites readers to reflect on the Cemetery’s legacy and discover its stunning natural beauty.
Illustrated with more than 100 images, Pensive Beauty shares the living memories of the community and traces the original vision for this remarkable place—from the architecture and art that frame our reflections to the tranquil landscape that unfolds beneath a canopy of trees.
“The skillful art direction and imaginative design by the team at White Bicycle is evident throughout the book. With thoughtful attention to the interplay of photographs, historic images, and text, the visual and written narratives are seamlessly woven into a beautiful and engaging whole.”
Melissa Banta, June 2023
This hardbound volume was printed in an edition of 1,000.
The cover is wrapped in Toile du Marais Sapin Green book cloth, finished with a custom deboss and tipped-in image. Interior pages are printed 4-color on Cougar Smooth, with Neenah Environment Birch endpapers.
Forest Lawn Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery in Buffalo, New York, founded in 1849 by Charles E. Clarke. It covers over 269 acres and over 152,000 are buried there, including U.S. President Millard Fillmore, singer Rick James, Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, and inventors Lawrence Dale Bell and Willis Carrier. Forest Lawn is on the National Register of Historic Places.
