Plein air painters brush on beauty in annual invitational

Artists will brush Laguna Beach’s natural beauty onto canvas at the 16th annual Plein Air Painting Invitational, presented by the Laguna Plein Air Painters Assn.

The eight-day event, which kicked off Oct. 12 and ends Sunday, features 35 nationally renowned plein air artists who are painting throughout Laguna Beach’s coast, canyons and coves. Each artist will submit three of his or her best works to exhibit at the Afternoon Collectors’ Soiree on Saturday.

Artists such as Ebrahim Amin, Ken Auster, Jacobus Baas, Michael Obermeyer, Michael Situ and April Raber, all Laguna residents, have participated in art discussions and public “paint-outs” throughout the week. Many others have traveled from Maine, Tennessee, Maryland and Texas.

Proceeds from the event will help fund children’s educational programs, scholarships and additional LPAPA programs.

Aidan Pesquera, 10, a student at St. Catherine of Siena Parish School in Laguna Beach, couldn’t have been more excited about the art event. Maeve Pesquera, his mother, said her son is sketching all the time.

Aidan met Costa Mesa artist Jeff Sewell at the Irvine Museum during a school field trip.

“He was just aflutter of Irvine Museum and plein air and was talking about it for a series of days,” Pesquera said.

The family, which moved to Laguna Beach from Texas four years ago, spotted information about the Plein Air Invitational in a newspaper. Aidan asked to go. Pesquera, her husband and sons went to the meet-and-greet Oct. 12 at The Ranch at Laguna Beach.

They met Sewell and learned about his techniques and passion for art.

Sewell, who was born and raised in Newport Beach, was awarded the Laguna Canyon Foundation Award of Excellence at the 2013 Laguna Beach Plein Air Invitational for his painting “Rise Above.”

“He spent a lot of time and was incredibly kind,” Pesquera said. “How exciting at 10 years old to be talking to an artist who can change your life. It’s had a big impact.”

If Aidan finds himself inspired to become a painter, he’ll be in good company.

As early as 1886, plein air artists came to Laguna Beach to paint the coastal community. Artists such as Edgar Payne, William Wendt and Franz A. Bischoff would become the founders of California Impressionism.

In 1918, the Laguna Beach Art Assn. was founded. Old Town Hall was the artists’ exhibition venue, and over the next few years, the association grew and attracted such luminaries of the art world as Joseph Kleitsch, Maurice Braun and Guy Rose.

With such prominence, the association outgrew the Old Town Hall gallery, and, in 1926, purchased land at Coast Highway and Cliff Drive. The gallery officially opened three years later. Today, it’s the Laguna Art Museum.

LPAPA hosts the invitational to enhance the visibility of its current artists and promote the landscape that Payne and others once captured.

Art enthusiasts may watch outdoor demonstrations Friday at three locations — The Ranch at Laguna Beach, Treasure Island Park and Heisler Park. Artists will show how they work in different mediums.

On Saturday, each artist will submit his or her three best pieces painted during the previous week to be judged at the Afternoon Collectors’ Soiree. Attendees may meet the artists, view their paintings and purchase works created during the week.

The soiree will include a cocktail reception, dinner and music performed by the Global Beat Foundation and a special guest. At the fundraiser, artists will compete for more than $20,000 in awards.

The week winds down with an art show and sale at The Ranch at Laguna Beach on Sunday. The public is invited to view the exhibit of more than 100 original works available for purchase.

If You Go

What: 16th Annual Laguna Beach Plein Air Painting Invitational

When: Outdoor artist demonstrations from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Friday at The Ranch at Laguna Beach, Treasure Island Park and Heisler Park; Afternoon Collectors’ Soiree from 4 to 8 p.m. Saturday at The Ranch at Laguna Beach; exhibit and meet-and-greet from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at The Ranch at Laguna Beach

Cost: Afternoon Collectors’ Soiree, $150; other events free

Information: (949) 376-3635 or visit lagunapleinair.org