Mug Guide To Inuhele, Atlanta’s Tiki And Polynesian Pop Weekend
- By Gabriel Bascom
- January 20, 2022
- 4:51 pm
Image by Stephen Candy Photography
Atlanta’s Tiki and Polynesian Pop culture weekend is fast approaching! Inuhele starts one week from now on January 28. There will be a number of opportunities for mug collectors who attend, so we have created a guide!
What is Inuhele?
Inuhele is one of the largest and most successful annual Tiki events on the East Coast. This year’s event is located at the Atlanta Sheraton Downtown Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia, and it will be occurring from January 28 through January 30, 2022.
Inuhele features a number of notable speakers including Daniel “Tiki Diablo” Gallardo, Jeff “Beachbum” Berry, Ken and Heather Pleasant from Witco Decor, and more! There will also be panels, classes, performances, and an impressive lineup of vendors.
Are tickets still available?
Yes, but for a limited time only! Ticket sales will close Monday, January 24, before the event. There will be no onsite event ticket sales, so make sure you purchase your ticket in advance. In addition to having a ticket, you must be fully vaccinated or provide a negative PCR test by a lab no more than 72 hours before the start of the convention. Tickets can be purchased through the official website of Inuhele.
Is there an official mug of Inuhele?
There is! We’re excited to reveal the sculpt for this year’s official Inuhele mug! It was designed by Jonathan Chaffin of Horror in Clay and sculpted by John Mulder of Eekum Bookum. Follow Inuhele on Instagram for the official announcement coming soon with final glaze pictures and pricing!
VIP ticket holders have one mug included in the cost of their ticket. If you are attending Inuhele without a VIP ticket, there will be some event mugs available at the Event Merch Booth in the Trading Post. In addition to mugs, the Event Merch Booth will have new glassware (pictured above) for 2022 and a few other surprises available for purchase.
Here is a closer look at some of the official event mugs released at Inuhele in years past:
Will there be any mug signing events?
Yes! Some mugs at Inuhele will be released during Meet and Greet events, while other mugs will be available for purchase in the Trading Post. There is also a mug collecting symposium. Some timed events to take note of are:
Tiki Diablo - Mug Sale and Meet and Greet
Friday, January 28 from 8:30pm to 9:30pm
Based out of Los Angeles, Danny “Tiki Diablo” Gallardo creates “exotic escapism” for clients around the world. When he isn’t carving Tikis or building bars, Danny manufactures highly-coveted and difficult to obtain ceramics inspired by the Oceanic Arts. He will be meeting attendees and selling mugs on Friday evening at the Dock.
Eekum Bookum - Mug Sale and Meet and Greet
Saturday, January 29 from 2:00pm to 4:00pm
John Mulder of Eeekum Bookum will be making an appearance on Saturday at the Dock to sell mugs and meet fans! Known for manufacturing some of the world’s most sought after mugs, John and his team create mugs by hand in Saint Petersburg, Florida.
The Search for Tiki - Presentation and Mug Sale
Sunday, January 30 from 10:00am to 11:00am
After a presentation from The Search for Tiki, Gabriel Bascom will be releasing The Satisfied Seal mug. Mug purchases will be limited to one per person and availability will be extremely limited. The mug was designed for The Search for Tiki by Doug Horne, sculpted by Patrick Vassar, and manufactured in the United States by Monkey Skull.
Mug Collecting for the Tiki Nerd - Jason T. Smith
Saturday, January 29 from 11:30am to 12:30pm
Jason T. Smith is a professional thrifter who built an entire Tiki museum inside his house. Dozens of vintage, difficult-to-find mugs have found a home in his collection. Prepare for “Mug Collecting for the Tiki Nerd” by watching the trailer! There will even be prizes.
What mugs will the Trading Post have?
Lots of mugs! This year’s Trading Post at Inuhele has an impressive lineup of artists exhibiting their wares. VIP ticket holders will get early access to the Trading Post on Friday starting at 12:30pm. For everyone else, the Trading Post will be open from 1:30pm to 7:00pm on Friday, 10:0am to 5:00pm on Saturday, and from 10:00am to 12:30pm on Sunday.
Some vendors that will have mugs for sale at their booth are:
BigToe
Tom “BigToe” Laura creates art with tongue-in-cheek humor inspired by Tiki, Kustom, and Surf cultures. This year, Tom will have some test glazes of his Kreature Trophy mug available for purchase, some “Sucking the Monkey” coconut mugs from his collaboration with Strong Water Anaheim, and some Surfin’ Monkey mugs from Stowaway. In addition to mugs, Tom will likely have deluxe art prints for sale to outfit your home Tiki bar.
Black Lagoon Room
Fans of the macabre will enjoy wares brought to life by The Black Lagoon Room, the creative brainchild of Pete Klockau, a cartoonist and designer in Milwaukee, WI! This year we have our eyes peeled for some of their Drunkie Shrunkies, Spook-Tikis, “Dorothy” mugs designed for At Random, and their Creature from the Crab Rangoon mugs in the Wasabi variant. If we’re really lucky, we might even spot some Thirsty Creature mugs in the Lagoon is Lava glaze!
Oakwash
Based out of Louisiana, Oakwash creates small batch ceramics. They have created mugs for Latitude 29 in New Orleans and most recently Pleasant Tiki. Omar Girona, Tristan Shipley, and Austin Lambert, will all be on hand at the event. We could see a variety of mugs up for sale from them, including Liki Tiki mugs, Monkey Skulls, Kolohe, Turtle mugs, Bumatays, and Bobs. Show up early for the best selection!
Taboo Relics
Franky Edwin of Taboo Relics will have several Polynesian inspired lamps for sale that come with “Owners Club” mugs. Even better, $200 from each Honu lamp set sale will go to Coastal Connections to help protect Florida aquatic wildlife habitats. Taboo Relics will also have a limited number of Pink Pina Cannon mugs available and an additional surprise!
The Shrunken Monkey
Looking for custom 1/1 art pieces and realistic-looking skulls? If so, you may want to make The Shrunken Monkey’s booth your first stop. Dave will have a number of unique ceramic mugs for sale, all made by hand in Orlando, Florida. We can’t wait to see what unique pieces The Shrunken Monkey will bring with him to Inuhele!
Besides mugs, what else can I get at Inuhele?
Although we love mugs, Inuhele has more to offer! Some other artists exhibiting at Inuhele include:
Aloha Art & Alligators
“Dr. Skipper” Marley
Derek Yaniger
Dr. Mike’s Shaving Emporium
jlh Illustration
Kattagast Jewelry
Kymm! Bang
Lake Tiki Woodcrafts
Miss Candice Hair Extraordinaire
Always Pretty by Kimber Portmann
Nancy’s Fancy Fruit
New Bang
Old Rags, Inc./ Basement Kahuna
Jeff Granito
Uke Republic
Pleasant Tiki
Smashfire Designs
Tiki Zombie
TikiRancher
Typhoon Tommy
Volcano Designs
Image by Stephen Candy Photography
Still have questions?
The answers to many questions can be found on the official website of Inuhele. We will update this guide as more mug information becomes available. If you see or would like to share with us a mug related announcement, please email us at admin@searchfortiki.com. We hope to see you at this year’s Inuhele event!
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