This is a statue of/ monument to Frank Zappa.
I believe it stands in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania
Click it to continue on....
Here's an update and interesting tidbit of info, from a reader:
I was recently in Baltimore, Maryland visiting a car dealership to sell my car and I happened
to pass by a library with a bust of Frank Zappa. Baltimore was Frank's hometown so I wasn't too
surprised but as a fan I decided to look it up online anyways. After failing to sell my car to the
auto sales guy, I went home, poked around google and came across this page. Turns out, there's some
interesting history behind this statue. Although Zappa never even set foot in Lithuania, when the
country gained its independence from the former Soviet Union all the Lennon and Marx statues were
torn down, which left a lot of empty mounting plates behind. Having a very strong avant garde art
community, many who happened to take political offices in the new government, a Frank Zappa Fan Club
was formed and somehow Frank became a symbol for the freedom and renewed hope Lithuanians had gained.
Although technically in the city of Vilnius, it is also within the Republic of Uzupis, a part of the city
that has declared itself an independent country, complete with a government, currency, constitution and flag.
Nobody else considers it a separate country, but you still get a new passport stamp if you visit the statue
which is pretty cool. Anyway, to make a long story short, the artists who created the original Lithuanian bust
decided to give a replica to Baltimore and eventually the city decided to place it in front of a library in
the Highlandtown neighborhood. As a Zappa fan, I just wanted to pass along this interesting bit of trivia in
case anyone else sees one of the busts and then finds this picture on your site like I did!