Laguna Beach
Laguna Beach art is known worldwide
as is Laguna Beach itself. A small California beach community
of around 25,000 Laguna Beach has a history of being both
an artist's haven and a tourist attraction.
In the summertime, hundreds of thousands
of visitors flock to Laguna Beach for the art, pictures, photos,
sand, sun, hotels, resorts, spas and unique restaurants. The
Laguna Beach Festival of Arts, which is a combination of the
Sawdust Art Festival, the Art-A-Fair Festival and the Pageant
of the Masters brings busloads of visitors during July
and August.
Hundreds of artists and photographers
participate in the Festival of Arts and gaining a spot within
one of the festivals can be quite challenging for some artists.
The ones who do make it can make most of their year's salary
from these two months out of the year.
While other retailers depend upon the
Christmas season to make most of their earnings, many Laguna
Beach artists depend upon summertime.
One of the main attractions of Laguna
Beach is Main Beach, which hosts a wooden boardwalk, monumental
guard tower and a great view of Catalina Island on most days.
To the north is Heisler Park where many families may picnic,
barbeque, take pictures or stroll down the steps to the beach.
Still further to the north are Shaw's
Cove and Diver's Cove where scuba divers check out the garibaldi
fish and underwater archways and kayakers can launch when
the waves are low. Photos are allowed everywhere even underwater.
Along the pathway, it is common to
see artists painting the natural beauty of the Laguna Beach
coastlines with canvas and oil paints right out in the plain
air. Many of these artists just love to chat about their work
and show it off to the passing tourists. Tourists will hand
you a camera and ask you to take a few pictures of them.
Just as the Festival and beaches are
the destination for many, Laguna Beach also has many fine
art galleries that attract all kinds of people from all over
the globe. Any style or artwork may be found at these galleries
and there is also a First Thursdays Art Tour where many galleries
stay open late, open their doors and serve wine and cheese
to those who visit.
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Even though
Laguna Beach is the home to many artists and photographers
and a long time art colony, it has had its share of
challenges over the years.
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The Great Laguna Beach Fire of 1993
was just one such incident. The fire burned 366 homes and
17,000 acres on the hillsides above Laguna. A few years later
mudslides struck, dumping 11 inches of rain in just 1 1/2
hours and destroying more homes. In 2005, after months of
dry weather, more homes 20 homes slid down the hillsides in
the Bluebird Canyon area causing evacuations and total losses.
But, the spirit of Laguna Beach is
strong and lives on. The artists stay, develop their crafts
and flourish. This is what keeps people remembering their
trip to Laguna and what keeps people coming back. In fact,
a recent newspaper article stated that Laguna Beach earns
more revenue from its art and photography than many major
metropolitan cities.
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So, if you happen
to be in Southern California this year, why not take
a day trip or more to beautiful Laguna Beach and watch
the art and the artists come to life?
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So, if you happen to be in Southern
California this year, why not take a day trip or more to beautiful
Laguna Beach and watch the art and the artists come to life?
Stop by the fire station and check out the new fountain complete
with statues. And, of course, the Senior Center which is also
a recreation center as well. I took photos of the building
of the Senior Center from the ground up and when I get a round
to it I will post the pictures on these pages.
Also see the flowers and plants that
only bloom in the winter time. Go boogie boarding or surfing
in the warm waters in July. Experience the many exciting art
galleries year round. You'll be glad you did. In addition,
take lots of photos and show them to all your friends and
family. These are pictures of Laguna Beach that will last
a lifetime.
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