Every summer, my wife and I visit Laguna Beach, often regarded as the art hub of the West Coast, to enjoy the art scene. Experiencing such creativity inspires our own—me in my writing and Anne in her art.
I believe all forms of the arts stimulate humanity’s creative spirit.
Laguna Beach hosts four major summer events. The most popular is the Sawdust Art Festival, where visitors can meet more than 185 artists, each with decorated booths and lots of items for sale. The event also includes food and beverages, live music, demonstrations, classes, and plenty of creativity.
One of my favorite activities is talking with artists about their lives and art forms. There is Shamus, who has been doing his craft for years. He visits junkyards looking for discarded metal items, welds them together, and creates art. We even own some of his pieces.
Each year, we visit Sue and Mark Winner’s booth. Sue designs unique clothing (Annie owns three of her special T-shirts), paints, and sculpts, while her husband makes distinctive pottery. Their art highlights creativity in action.
We spoke with at least ten different artists and enjoyed hearing their stories about how they started and their dedication to their craft.
The second venue, located a hundred yards south of the Sawdust Art Festival, is the Art-A-Fair. It features over 112 artists and offers workshops, food and beverages, and live music. These artists are from all over the world, including Iran, Russia, France, South Africa, and China, as well as our own country. Natalia is from Russia and specializes in oil and watercolor paintings; she is a stickler for detail. Her husband lays wooden floors and then uses the leftover pieces of wood to make unique wooden pens, cutting boards, small boxes, and other pieces of art.
Veronica is from France, close to where we used to live in Strasbourg, and she creates stunning, realistic acrylic canvases. She invited us as her guests to the opening night, where we had the chance to meet and connect with many of the artists. The variety of art was the best we’ve seen there (we’ve been visiting for about thirty years), and each artist’s story is fascinating and full of creativity.
The third venue, located across the street, is called the Festival of Arts, which is heavily juried with over 120 artists, each specializing in the best of the best.
I talked to Gary, my Japanese American friend who’s been there for years, known for his unique pottery designs using crystals. His works show creativity at its best.
We spoke with Cheryl, an underwater photographer who works with professional mermaids who perform around the world. All her photos are taken underwater in her pool, where the mermaids hold their poses just long enough for Cheryl to capture the perfect shot. We spent half an hour listening to Cheryl as she explained her creative process.
There’s David K., who can spend up to three thousand hours drawing a scene with his pencils that looks as real as a photograph. His creativity is truly inspiring.
At this same venue is the Pageant of the Masters, which is held nightly under the stars. Live actors recreate scenes from famous works of art, hold these poses for over a minute, and provide the audience with a 3D experience. This spectacle is unique and highly creative.
I share this with you because it’s easy to develop a negative view of the world we live in today. But being surrounded by so much creativity gave us lots of optimism about all the good around us. It gives us an inspirational high.
Have you attended an art show recently? Do so! It’s good for one’s positivity.
PeaceLoveJoyHopeKindness
Bil
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P.S. People often ask me provocative questions about current events, both religious and secular. I have found that some of these questions are being asked universally. I’ll be periodically alternating regular articles with one of those questions and my answer. I invite you to send me your question to bilaulenbach@yahoo.com.
Photo courtesy of Festival of Arts
So true, Bil. My spirits were lifted recently when we visited the Hilbert Museum. Also, watching PBS archeological or nature shows never fails to amaze and uplift me. They help me to focus on beauty and on the people who devote themselves to amazing accomplishments in this world.