Artist fills a niche

A long-empty niche at the Laguna Beach County Water District will finally be graced with a piece of art that reflects the history of both the district and Laguna.

“It’s taken almost a year,” said artist Michele Taylor of her “Canyon Preserve” tile mural, which will be unveiled Thursday at 6 p.m., during the August First Thursdays Art Walk.

“The niche has been sitting for so long that it really needed something to complete the building,” Taylor said.

Arts Commission vice chair Mike Tauber noticed the empty alcove at 306 Third St. ? across Loma Place from the new “People’s Council” sculpture ? and approached the water district regarding having a piece of art by Taylor installed in it.

Water district officials held a meeting and discussed their requirements with Tauber and Taylor. They also gave final approval of the design.

“We let Michelle know that we wanted her work to reflect the district’s past without being an advertisement,” said Christopher Regan, a spokesman for the water district, which agreed to co-sponsor the work with CAP.

“It was a quick sketch when I presented it,” Taylor said, “but they were very ? as I was ? happy and fortunate to get this project going. The district was absolutely professional and so warm. They were all very receptive. It’s been a joy.”

“When we saw the final design, she just captured the canyon in such a great light; even that is going to fit so well with the building,” Regan said. “The image is a timeless depiction of the canyon.”

“Mike and I have worked on a lot of projects together,” Taylor said. She and Tauber, who acted as her project manager, then met with the Community Art Project and showed them the design.

“I thought it was absolutely marvelous,” said Julita Jones, president of Community Art Project (CAP). “It’s going to be a wonderful addition to the city and couldn’t be in a better location. People will be able to sit at the sculpture in front of the fire station and look at the mural from there,” Jones said.

“She’s one of my favorite artists anyway; I have a couple of pieces of hers in my collection,” she added.

“CAP became very excited about it, and we’re very excited about it,” Regan said. “That inset has been empty for quite awhile.”

The project cost $14,000, the costs for which were split evenly between Community Art Project and the water district. CAP used a grant from the city’s hotel bed tax as part of its contribution.

The original building was constructed in 1927, and was renovated and expanded beginning in 1987. The niche was built at that time and was originally intended for an Art in Public Places installation.

“The architect of the original building was Aubrey St. Clair. Our history shows that he was the son of the first artist in Laguna Beach, Norman St. Clair,” Regan said. “It’s a nice fit; we think that he would have been thrilled.”

The piece will be enshrouded until Aug. 3.

“It’s kind of neat that they keep it covered up until the opening. I think it’s going to be very popular,” Jones said.

In the days before the unveiling, Taylor was nervous but excited.

“It’s looking fantastic,” she said. “It’s surreal to see it in full. We came up with something that was definitely appropriate to the site. I wanted it to be a window into the canyon.”

To prepare for the project, Taylor hiked and sketched throughout Laguna Canyon.

“I started with sketches and drawings, and knew I wanted to include water and old sycamores,” Taylor said. “I knew that I wanted it to be representative of the canyon.”

She and Tauber also studied the art techniques of the 1920s and 30s.

“Mike and I did a lot of research together,” she said.

She read about people who lined up to get water at the spring located in the canyon.

“People have plumbing issues today and complain about that. They take advantage of what they have without thinking of how it got to them. The water district allows this colony to even be here; for people to live here,” Taylor said.

She used custom glazes in the mural in order to achieve a wide and unusual variety of colors, including pinks and purples. “Most of the glazes that are in that piece aren’t store-bought,” Taylor said.

The mural is quite large; sinewy sycamores reach into the air before a mottled background of sky, with water in the foreground that actually appears aqueous.

When Taylor regards the piece, she sees it as being personally symbolic of the extent of research and technical detail used in creating the mural.

Taylor’s passion for the canyon is longstanding.

“When I first moved here, I moved to the canyon; I just believe it’s one of the most phenomenal places in Laguna,” she said.