2 & A 20: Portrait of the Artists

Written by Cindy Morgan

"Come on—we need to get in the car and go NOW," I shouted.

"But we are playing with our pets. We can't go now."

"Your pets are four snails from the garden I think they are going to be okay for two hours." I was actually hoping the neighbor kids would "accidentally" crush them while we were gone they were wreaking havoc in my vegetable garden.

"TWO WHOLE HOURS? Where are we going?"

"To an art class." Before they had a chance to get so much as a groan out I yelled, "GET IN THE CAR NOW."

Pouting and grumbling, waving tearfully to their snails, my kids got in the car and we headed for Laguna Beach for a Youth Arts Education Day at the Festival of the Arts. Sessions, created and staffed by local artists, run between 10 a.m. and noon and 1 to 3 p.m. on Tuesdays and Wednesdays for kids between 5 and 12. These are more than a few notches up from making crafts out of sticky foamies. Some of the classes in August include "Leaf Print and Nature Stamps," "Jewelry Design" and "Journal and Photo Albums." These are things you might actually want to display in your home rather than forward to the trash at the earliest possible moment.

My goal was to get us in and out of Laguna Beach by 11:30 kick off time for the semi-final World Cup match between Uruguay and the Netherlands. In my typically disorganized style, I had signed them up for this class without first checking the World Cup schedule. The longer they took to get in the car, the greater the likelihood that I would not be home in time for kick off.

The weather matched our collective mood that July morning: sullen and desultory. By the time we hit PCH it was raining. Raining. . .in July . . .in Laguna Beach. Could the morning get any worse?

We parked, fed the meter and jog-walked through the drizzle to the entrance of the Festival Grounds. We were late, but not disastrously so. We were escorted back to a set of tables under a canopy where there were already eight or nine kids working with three local artists on the project of the day: "Nature and Seed Mosaics." My two were resigned to the task at hand and selected the black-line nature shape on a mat board that they would spend an hour filling in with dried lentils, pinto beans, black beans, yellow split peas, rice and glue. Within moments they were absorbed in the project. The artists were engaged and positive, talking to them about techniques and colors, giving lots of encouragement. They quickly forgot all about their mean mom, their bad moods and the four pet snails left in the care of the next-door neighbors.

My mood perked up as well because once they were crafting, I was free to stroll around the displays of art throughout the Festival grounds. And stroll I did, checking out paintings, photographs, jewelry and sculptures. At that hour and in that weather, I was one of very few people taking in the art and that made it even more enjoyable. There were no crowds to speak of so I could get up close and study a series of watercolors for as long as I wanted. I was able to flip through the racks of professional photographs without feeling rushed. As a person who hates crowds and hot weather, this was a thoroughly enjoyable way to take in some high quality works of art. The only negative for me was the coffee kiosk wasn't open at that hour— a hot beverage would have cheered me up immensely, as I was getting colder and wetter.

At about 11:15 (not that I was counting the minutes or anything. . .) they were done. I knew if I was a really good mom I would walk them around the grounds and show them some of the cool artwork on display, or maybe encourage them to make another mosaic. We would walk over to the printmaking demonstration that is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday. But I was not that mom. I was the cold, wet, soccer-obsessed mom, and I figured, why push it? They're happy, and heck, I just might make it home close to kick off.

What I spent: $20 on the art class ($10 per kid); $2 on parking at a meter.
What they learned: A high quality craft is enough to distract from the bad weather and bad moods of July especially mom's.
What I learned: Thanks to the DVR—quite possibly the best invention ever, especially for scheduling-challenged moms like me—I got to enjoy fine arts and fine soccer without missing a moment of either.

Youth Art Education Days at The Festival of the Arts Tuesdays and Wednesdays (10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 to 3 p.m.). Reservations required: Some classes already full. $10 per child. 650 Laguna Canyon, Laguna Beach. 949-464-4234. www.LagunaFestivalofArts.org.

 

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