Recently, hood ornaments have become a subject of performance art, in the form of tableaux vivants, or "living pictures."

Live performers will recreate hood ornaments at this year's Pageant of the Masters, an arts festival that has taken place each summer since 1935 in Laguna Beach, Calif. The theme of this year's pageant, which runs through Sept. 1, is "On the Road: A Crash Course in Art and Popular Culture."