Art-A-Fair opens in Laguna Beach
The Art-A-Fair is a festival that has been in Laguna Beach for 47 years and each summer it welcomes artists from different parts of California, other states and around the world. It does not have restrictions with residency like other local shows in town. It is a place welcoming visiting artists to display their work.
A committed board of artist members volunteer time and energy to guide the progress and growth of this event. There are 125 exhibiting members currently displaying art.
Wine and cheese was offered by many artists who were near their art so they could answer questions and even Chris Whynaught, contemporary blues musician, had visitors on the dance floor.
“Being from Iran, I learned to oil paint from my talented brother Siavash Zafarmand. I migrated to the states and opened up an art school for children (Mission Art Center) in the city of Orange and was excited to sell a painting my first night of the show,” Shabnam Zafarmand said.
From Chile a husband and wife team, Luis and Clara Gac Tapia, display their ceramics.
“It’s our third year at the show and we sold quite a bit.. My wife puts flowers on teapots and I like to create interesting shapes for vases,” Luis Tapia said.
Moran Nhel is inspired by nature and wants to make an impact by creating ceramic art involving animals. He uses wood from Cambodia that sits under a ceramic sting ray creature .
“I come from Cambodia and grew up in a fishing village where I remember an abundant sea life and parakeets were flying everywhere but if you go back today there is nothing left, all the animals seem to be gone because the Basil tree has been cut down and everything has become a city,” Nhel said.
Applications for the 48th annual Art-A-Fair Festival can be submitted February 9, 2014 and art may only be original work of an artist own design and execution.
To find out more about the artist that were participating, go to Art-A-Fair.com