There are times during guided tours at museums when you catch a glimpse of areas that are off limits to visitors, and you immediately want that tour – the one that’s behind-the-scenes, off-script and more real.
This is that tour.
A group of talented Laguna Beach artists are opening their studios for the first time on Oct. 8, from 4-8 p.m. Dubbed “&Art” and led by Mark Garry, the resident artists will include Stephanie Bachiero, Candice Brokenshire, Jorg Dubin, Katlin Evans and Colas Moore, along with guest artists Baldemar Fierro, Jim Olarte, Emily Howell and Tyler Brooks.
There will also be music by Ben Wagner and Friends with special guest The Sherman Underwood. Little-known fact: The percussionist for The Sherman Underwood has played for Tom Waits, Mike Watt, T Bone Burnett and film director David Lynch.
But more importantly, there will be tacos and yard games. (Yes, you can drink and play Cornhole, America’s new favorite pastime.)
The emphasis here will be on fun and art.
“I wanted to get some folks out here who are real artists and give them a chance to be seen,” Garry said.
It’s clear from the lineup that this isn’t your grandpa’s Sawdust Festival or a carefully curated roster from the Festival of the Arts.
Garry, like other Laguna artists who tend to shy away from the sheen of Instagram, want people to socialize – you know, face-to-face like humans.
And if during the conversations, you compare notes on the declining state of Laguna’s art culture, then all the better.
“The art around here is beyond shit,” Garry said. “It has nothing to do with actual art. It has a lot to do with toe rings.”
There are standards in art, and Laguna is not meeting them, Garry said. The extremes are apparent.
Art for most people is “Michelangelo, Picasso or dolphins,” Garry said. “And if you tell them you’re an artist from Laguna Beach, they’re thinking dolphins. And that couldn’t be further away from my sensibility.”
So no dolphins or dogs playing poker that you might see in downtown galleries.
Fellow artist and organizer Jorg Dubin agreed with Garry’s description about the state of Laguna’s art community.
“There are some artists residing and working in Laguna Beach that few are aware of because they are either under-represented or have no local representation,” Dubin said. “Many are creating work that the local galleries would never exhibit, nor would the Laguna Art Museum. Some are shunned entirely even though they have spent their entire careers living and creating art here in the ‘colony.’”
Dubin said this lack of support is one reason why artists leave Laguna.
“Many real artists have left town for these same reasons. &ART was motivated by the desire of the artists involved to show the community that there is work being created here that is outside the norm of what is seen at the festivals, galleries and LAM,” Dubin said. “Relying on community support can be a fool’s errand; however, this group of artists is taking charge of their outreach to the community as a way of showing folks that there is still a segment of the artists community willing to create work rarely seen within the art establishment of the, cough, art colony.”
Garry added that Laguna likes to think of itself as the center of the universe.
“There are some real sentient artists who are taking their cues from things that are going on in L.A. and New York. They don’t really care much about dolphins and waves, which means they actually have something to say and show,” he said.
If you intend to go to the event, be sure to note the parking details in the sidebar.
Otherwise, just enjoy yourself, bring your own beverage and bone up on the bags.
