This is as close as we can come to actually singing to our readers on their birthdays!

We’d love to include yours – and/or your children’s birthdays here.

Just email to:

editor@stunewslaguna.com

Celebrate and enjoy your

birthday!





Sept 25

Arianna Noppenberger

Cathleen Falsani Possley

David Rosales

Jordan Kelly

Piper Pearce Herkewitz





Sept 26

Tobi Williams





Sept 27

Alexis Amaradio

Becca Peng

Beverly Andrews

Mark McAdams

Mark Orgill

Wayne Peterson





Sept 28

Don Coulson

Jeannie Simons

Marissa Hoffman

Misty LaChance

Pam Cates





Sept 29

Molly Greig





Sept 30

Barron Edward Ressler

Cory Sparkuhl

Sean Brown

September McGee





Oct 1

Christopher Trela

Frank Hufnagel

Judee Chapman

Mariano Molteni

Ryan Raphael

Sher Kopach

Steve Josephson

Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center secures nonprofit status and seeks volunteers

The Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center last week announced that it is officially classified as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) entity, after having been approved by the Internal Revenue Service as a tax-exempt, charitable organization. Now, the center is urging lovers of the arts to support its growth by volunteering time and donating to the Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center to harness the power of the arts for the benefit of communities throughout Southern California.

“We look to be an accessible and affordable epicenter for art by offering exhibition and event space to showcase leading-edge, experiential, and thought-provoking art, in the heart of Southern California’s premier art colony,” said Rick Conkey, founder of the Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center. “Now, we are seeking volunteers and donations to extend this vision.”

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Rick Conkey, founder of Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center

The Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center is a beacon and catalyst for advancing art appreciation, enhancing quality of life, and promoting civic and cultural development. By hosting fledgling and seasoned artists who are making a difference in music, video, film, dance, poetry, prose, the visual arts, and arts education, the center looks to promote emotional connections and artistic progress.

Through a dedicated space in the heart of Laguna Beach, along the Forest Avenue Promenade, Laguna’s first cultural arts center preserves one of America’s longest-running galleries and contributes to local communities through live, online,s and streaming exhibitions and events.

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The Salty Suites

Sponsored by local merchants and organizations, the Center’s flagship online program, “The Anything Goes Happy Hour,” features interesting and timely local, regional and international talent, including insightful interviews. The Anything Goes Happy Hour has hosted international artists, like Grammy-nominated reggae legend Pato Banton and Australian X Factor sensation Emmanuel Kenny, along with local favorites, such as Nick “I” Hernandez of Common Sense – and “Mad Dogs & The Englishman” with front man Jason Feddy.

“It’s fantastic to welcome a new venue and new grassroots organization to town that will represent the arts, fit and work perfectly with Laguna’s established arts institutions,” said Jason Feddy, Laguna Beach’s 2019 Artist of the Year. “The LBCAC will provide a marvelous shared resource for more powerful collaboration.”

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Kalama Brothers

“Art is not constrained to simply represent our current reality, but to wholly reinvent the way we work and live. The Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center is a great way for those of us who love art and want to see change, to become true ‘artivists’,” said Toni Iseman, City Council member and former Mayor of Laguna Beach. “Artivism inspires social change and is open to everyone, so there is no better time than now to volunteer, donate, or create art, in any form, that drives action.”

Take Action! Click here to Support the Arts and Drive Change and donate to the Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center (LBCAC).

Click here to reserve the LBCAC for a private event, volunteer time and/or skills.

Click here to view “Anything Goes Happy Hour” episodes.

Follow the LBCAC on social media at www.facebook.com/lbculturalartscenter and https://twitter.com/lbcac235.

LCAD artists and activists host Virtual Exhibition and Fundraiser to Honor Black Lives Matter

Currently available and continuing until October 30, 2020, LCAD Gallery proudly presents “Artists Unite: A Virtual Exhibition and Fundraiser to Honor Black Lives Matter.”

In this moment of deep reflection and social transformation, LCAD Gallery is bringing LCAD’s community of artists and activists together to raise funds benefiting the Black Art Futures Fund (BAFF) and LCAD Equity + Inclusion Scholarship. The exhibition features work by students, alumni, faculty, and staff, and 100 percent of all sales will go directly to these charities.

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Courtesy of LCAD

“Grace,” 2020, by Dave Hobrecht, world-renowned black & white sports artist

Work by the following artists is included in the virtual gallery: Abig, Abigail Albano-Payton, Piper Bangs, Alla Bartoshchuk, Amy Bauer, Bryce Brewer, Tal Burke, Jonathan Burke, Robin Cole, Wendy Garcia, Sophia Green, Chapman Hamborg, Kenny Harris, Dave Hobrecht, Melanie LaMay, Hilary McCarthy, Tod Orbach, Zachary Pinion, Angela Ramones, Betty Shelton, Luke Silverthorne, Kelly Smith-Fatten, Jenna Swerdfeger, Jordan Tacker, Joseph Todorovitch, Grady Williams, Sophia Yacoby, and Peter Zokosky.

In a recent interview in the OC ART Blog, contributing artist Abigail Albano-Payton said, “[Black Lives Matter] has affected my art. Personally, for me, I’m devastated by everything that’s going on in this country. Art’s always been the thing that keeps me on the ground. Art has been therapeutic for me during this whole process.”

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Courtesy of LCAD

“George Floyd” by 2020 LCAD graduate Chapman Hamborg

Black Art Futures Fund (BAFF) is a collective of emerging philanthropists promoting the elevation and preservation of Black arts and culture. Through grant making, board-matching, and organization-to-donor cultivation, BAFF seeks to amplify and strengthen the future of Black art. BAFF provides grants to small ($750K or less) nonprofit organizations working to enhance the future of Black arts and culture. DéLana R.A. Dameron founded Black Arts Futures as a philanthropic initiative of Red Olive Creative Consulting in 2017.

Black Art Futures Fund aims to:

--Grow emerging philanthropists by providing a structured community to understand the importance of generous contributions to community-centered artists and arts and culture organizations.

--Provide impactful general operating grants to those organizations in an effort to stabilize, validate, introduce to future philanthropists, and support the future of their work.

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Courtesy of LCAD

“Cadence” by Robin Cole, 2013 MFA LCAD graduate

On June 8, 2020, in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and in support of social justice, the LCAD community of Trustees, Administrative Leadership, and Faculty vowed to create the LCAD Equity + Inclusion Scholarship, which provides vital support to LCAD’s under-represented Black students. Laguna College of Art + Design promises real change. The College embraces the power of representation and recognizes the role that art plays in strengthening the community.

Through this Equity + Inclusion Scholarship, LCAD pledges to help eradicate disparities in its student representation.

To access the virtual gallery, click here.

For more about Black Art Futures Fund, go to www.blackartfutures.org.

For more information about LCAD, go to www.lcad.edu.

Community Garden Park to celebrate a harvest of art and delicious local food on October 3

This year the South Laguna Community Garden Park will celebrate in a modified form the Garden Park’s success at bringing the Laguna Beach community together while producing beauty and promoting healthy living.

Instead of a gala gathering, meals for four or two prepared by Chef Tiffani Tincher and Farmer Leo will be delivered to ticket holders’ doors at dinner time on Saturday, Oct 3, with safety precautions observed. The meal includes cocktails, appetizer, salad, vegetables, main course, dessert, and wine.

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First Place: “Matilija Poppy IV” by Elizabeth McGhee, 5” x 7” colored pencil drawing

Ann Christoph says, “Our abundant rains late last spring produced an especially dazzling show of flowers at the Garden Park. Even though we had to cancel our usual classes and community events, solitary appreciation of beauty was still permitted. So we invited artists to paint at the Garden Park and submit their works for a competition. The artists were a delight, so pleased to enjoy the Garden Park, masks and all. We appreciate their lovely and creative submittals and their generosity in allowing us to offer their works for sale to benefit the Garden Park.”

Bids will close at 8 p.m. on October 3, during the dinner.

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Second Place: “A Thousand Beautiful Things” by Fernando Micheli

The paintings were juried by Bill Atkins, graphic artist and art director of Gallery Q; Jonathan Burke, former president of the Laguna College of Art and Design; and Carole Zavala, painter, art teacher, and one of the founders of Gallery Q.

A sensitively rendered colored pencil depiction of a Matilija Poppy by Elizabeth McGhee is the first place winner. A bold and beautiful painting of the upper garden, titled A Thousand Beautiful Things, by Fernando Micheli is second place. A lovely gouache rendering of the lower garden and oceanscape beyond at sunset by Mai Igarashi is third.

Four honorable mention works by Kelsey Irvin, Lorraine Dawson, Ernesto Brieño, and Karen Hedges head the gallery on the auction site that shows all the impressive works submitted, including three children’s submittals by Autumn and Isla Borthwick, and Estephania Elgueta.

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Third Place: Gouache rendering by Mai Igarashi

Art works are available for viewing at 31709 Coast Hwy. Call (949) 499-3574 for questions regarding the art.

To reserve event tickets, click here. A curated program of entertainment will accompany your meal.

An important part of the event is the array of paintings of the Garden Park produced by local artists, offered at auction. To view the gallery, click here.

Funds raised will support the Garden Park and its efforts to become a permanent part of our city’s beautification and recreational offerings.

South Laguna Community Garden Park is a project of the South Laguna Civic Association. Charitable Ventures of Orange County (CVOC), a 501(c)(3) organization, is fiscal sponsor for the Garden Park. (Tax ID#20-8756660).

Online reservations and donations may be made at www.southlaguna.org/garden.

JoAnne Artman Gallery presents online exhibition Submerged

JoAnne Artman Gallery announces the online opening of the exhibition Submerged, featuring the works of America Martin, Billy Schenck, Greg Miller, and Jane Maxwell. Viewers are invited to dive headfirst into Submerged, which explores the relationship between figures and nature. Submerged presents water as a psychological space for reflecting upon form, memory, and isolation.

Chronicling the story of water across a range of mediums, Martin, Schenck, Miller, and Maxwell detail the physical and emotional transformations of a body submerged in water. The exhibition can be viewed until September 30, 2020.

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America Martin, “Woman by the Sea Look Out at the Sun,” Oil and Acrylic on Canvas, 90 x 90 inches

America Martin offers thoughtful, meditative reflections in works that meld dreams with allegory. Testing the connection between personal history and sense-memory, Martin’s work often centers on overarching themes of human nature and our contact with the environment. Her technique of freehandedly capturing her subjects yields unapologetic marks and a spirited palette that hums with the vitality and vigor of the worlds she creates. Presenting these ideas in a unified, symbolic narrative, Martin’s fluid outlines of female forms weave, merge, and blend with the colors of her backgrounds, as body and water landscape become one.

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Billy Schenck, “Surfer Girl 1,” Oil on Canvas, 31.5 x 41.5 inches

Fusing spaghetti westerns with tongue-in-cheek humor, Billy Schenck is known as an originator of the Pop Western Movement. Incorporating techniques from photo-realism and pop art, such as the inclusion of Ben-Day dots and brightly juxtaposing colors and patterns, Schenck explores themes like the clashes between wilderness and civilization, freedom and restriction, and nature and folklore. Fascinated by surf culture and preludes to big waves, Schenck’s surfer girls depict a facet of Americana as iconic as his western paintings.

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Greg Miller, “Beverly,” Acrylic, Collage Paper and Resin on Panel, 30 x 40 inches

In his new works, Greg Miller revisits his series of swimmers submerged in water that bring forth fantasy and imagination. Constructing underwater realms that capture a moment of pause within the constantly changing and moving form of water, Miller’s works highlight the quiet tranquility of water and nature. Emphasizing surface quality and dimension, Miller’s collage-like process approaches light as both a subject and medium. Dynamically combining mixed medias of acrylic paint, found and repurposed paper materials, and a resin topcoat, the depth achieved mimics that of the bodies of water depicted. Masterfully manipulating spatial perception and luminescence, the visual shifts in Miller’s works suggest the passing of time and moments of man intruding nature.

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Jane Maxwell, “Yellow Polka Dots”, Mixed Media with Resin on Panel, 58 x 27 inches

Jane Maxwell’s artwork approaches the female body with an affectionate and celebratory feminist perspective. Extending her focus on female empowerment and fashion to swimwear, Maxwell’s silhouettes emerge from the dimensional, textural backgrounds clad in the vestiges of paper ephemera. Maintaining texture through layering and building up the surface, the enigmatic quality of the works is reiterated by Maxwell’s use of ads and billboard materials that reveal words and phrases that tease us with alluring allusions. The anonymous figures have a definitive flair and attitude, keeping us at a distance as they swim and sunbathe, while pulling us further into their multi-dimensional narratives.

Artman says, “These works will inspire, provoke, engage, and mesmerize. With visual perceptions always changing, peek behind the stories told and you’re sure to find the right artistic expression.”

To view the online exhibition, click here.

For more information on JoAnne Artman Gallery, go to www.joanneartmangallery.com.

Contact JoAnne Artman at (949) 510-5481 or joanneartman@aol.com.

Crystal Cove Conservancy fundraiser gala goes virtual to benefit STEM programs

The 18th Annual Crystal Cove Conservancy fundraiser, usually held on the blufftop overlooking beautiful Crystal Cove, has pivoted to a livestream virtual event scheduled for Friday, Oct. 9, with all proceeds benefiting the Conservancy’s science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) programs. Title sponsor The Resort at Pelican Hill will provide dinner and wine to-go for sponsors and underwriters.

“Underserved students in our community shouldn’t lose the opportunity to learn because of the pandemic,” said Kate Wheeler, Conservancy president and CEO. “Over the last several months, we’ve adapted all of our programs for Distance Learning platforms so we can continue to support our students and their teachers until we can bring them all back to the Park.”

Rooted in the notion that Crystal Cove State Park is an ideal outdoor classroom for cultivating young environmentalists, the Conservancy uses a social enterprise model to fund preservation, conservation and education initiatives with the goal of creating a sustainable future for Crystal Cove State Park.

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Courtesy Crystal Cove Conservancy

Crystal Cove Conservancy’s virtual gala will help support its STEM programs

“A Night In With Crystal Cove” will livestream at 6:30 p.m. and will include a live auction and special guest Carl Safina, ecologist and author. “In the same way our educational programs bond students to the Park and its delicate habitats, Carl’s writing, grounded in science, builds an emotional connection between his readers and the natural world – inspiring readers to real action,” said Wheeler.

The event will begin with a toast in memory of philanthropist and community leader Madeline Swinden, who was a staple of the event for more than 10 years, followed by a look at the Conservancy’s work to support students and teachers during the COVID crisis, and a live auction with villa packages from The Resort at Pelican Hill, a seven-night Mammoth getaway, and weekend stays at the Crystal Cove Beach Cottages.

Many companies, foundations and individuals have already stepped up to sponsor the event including Title Sponsor The Resort at Pelican Hill; the Gardner Grout Foundation; Eva and Doug Le Bon; the Massen Greene Foundation; Crystal Cove Beach Cottages; Lucy Donahue; the Archarios Foundation in honor of Madeline Swinden; Paula and Jeff Cole; Contrarian Group, Inc.; Stephanie Quesada and Vince Jackson; Teddie Ray; Roger’s Gardens; Fred and Wendy Salter; Shelley B. Thunen; Glenn Bozarth, Laura Davick, founder of Crystal Cove Conservancy; the MacGillivray Family Foundation; Janet and Walkie Ray; Al Bennett and Rudi Berkelhamer; and Scott and Angelica Palazzo.

For more information on the event and how to become a sponsor or purchase an opportunity drawing ticket for a three-night stay in Cottage #14 at Crystal Cove, visit https://crystalcove.org/nightin/. To register for the livestream event, visit www.cove.givesmart.com.