In The Arts

Student juried art exhibition set

“The Best of the Best,” an annual juried exhibition of artwork by the undergraduate students at Laguna College of Art & Design, will be on display March 31 through April 29 in the college gallery at 2222 Laguna Canyon Road.

The public is invited to attend the opening reception and award presentation from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. April 7. The exhibition is free.

Cash prizes will be awarded to honor the artworks that are juried as the best in each of the following award categories: animation, drawing and painting, graphic design, illustration, game art and sculpture.

This year’s awards have been made possible through the Pacific Art Foundation. The panel of judges includes Maggie Owens, Pat Neisser, Jay Slosar and Patti Mickey.

LOCA plans canyon hike March 27

Laguna Outreach for Community Arts (LOCA) will sponsor a nature hike in Laguna Canyon at 8:30 a.m. March 27. The easy, three-mile route is appropriate for beginners and families.

The hikers will meet at the James Dilley Preserve, on Laguna Canyon Road just east of the 73 Toll road overpass. Parking is $3, and a donation of $20 is requested to support the educational arts programs of LOCA. Refreshments will be served.

Drop-ins are welcome, but reservations are preferred. For more information, e-mail LOCAarts@yahoo.com, or call Rosalind Doidge at (949) 510-4469.

Orgill helps raise funds for college

LCAD will be the beneficiary of a raffle sponsored by Mark Orgill, owner of [seven degrees].

Orgill has donated a stay in a two-bedroom villa at Sunset Cove Villas Oceanfront Resort for a grand prize drawing in May. The donation, valued at more than $2,500, will fund renovations to the campus gallery.

“We wish to express our gratitude to Mark for his generous donation,” said Jonathan Burke, vice president of academic affairs. “Allowing LCAD to sell tickets for the weekend at Sunset Cove will help raise much needed funds for the new college gallery.”

Burke said that 100% of donations will go toward the gallery building fund.

Tickets are $50 each and available at www.lagunacollege.edu. The winner will be announced at 7 p.m. May 4 at [seven degrees] during the fifth annual Senior Fine Art Exhibition.

Hoyos exhibit at Salt Fine Art

Salt Fine Art will present a two-month exhibition of drawings, paintings, sculptures and photographs by Ana Mercedes Hoyos, considered to be one of Colombia’s most renowned artists, beginning April 1.

The exhibition, “Land of the Free “” Palenque,” focuses on a small town in Colombia, which was founded by runaway African slaves, according to gallery owner Carla Teslak.

“The exhibition represents a departure from the richly colored, luscious fruits and the Afro-Colombian market ladies that immortalized Ana Mercedes,” Teslak said. “Instead, we see a bold return to the stark minimalism of her earlier years, still focused on the Palenque population and it’s particular historic and cultural relevance.”

Hoyos’ work is collected in galleries worldwide and this exhibit will be her first in Southern California in more than a decade, Teslak said.

A reception for the artist is planned for 6 to 9 p.m. April 1 during First Thursdays Art Walk. The gallery is at 1492 S. Coast Hwy., Suite 3. For more information, call (949) 715-5554.

Rhoads, Mellor join college board

Suzanne Mellor and Keating Rhoads have been elected to the LCAD Board of Trustees, according to a news release from Laguna College.

“In addition to being very bright people, each of our new trustees brings special experience to keep the college moving forward. We are fortunate and proud to have them on the governing board,” college President Dennis Power said in a release.

Rhoads is president and chief operating officer of Nursing Education International, a start-up pre-licensure nurse education venture.

He began his career in higher education administration at Stanford and the University of San Francisco before entering the newspaper industry in 1978, with Harte-Hanks Communications Inc.

Recruited in 1985 by the Times Mirror Co. as the chief finance and operations officer and director for The Morning Call Inc. in Pennsylvania, he then joined the Los Angeles Times in 1991.

Rhoads then served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Creative Computers, a computer reseller and e-commerce entity, and as chief executive and chairman of the board of directors of Tartan Textile Services. He also has served as a director of e-Cost.com and held board positions with the Los Angeles Urban League, the Times Mirror Foundation, the Blind Children’s Learning Center in Tustin, the Pacific Symphony Orchestra and Laguna Art Museum.

Mellor is an advisor to the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. and is a charter member of that organization. In 2006, she established the Suzanne and James Mellor prize at the museum.

She is also a member of the Dean’s Leadership Council at UC Irvine; the Director’s Circle at the National Gallery of Arts in Washington, D.C.; the Laguna Playhouse Board of Trustees; and a Foundation Board Member of Mission Hospital. She and her husband have lived in Laguna Beach since 1997.

Officers of the board are: Jim McQueen, chairman; Stevan Gromet, vice chairman; Nancy Milby, treasurer; and Lisa Dallendorfer, secretary.

Stevens to sign new book March 27

Richard Stevens, an Orange County business executive who has survived a heart transplant, colon cancer, a coma and other serious surgeries, will sign copies of his book, “Never Give Up!,” from noon to 2 p.m. March 27 at Latitude 33 bookshop, 311 Ocean Ave. The public is invited to meet Stevens and his co-author wife, Joan.

For more information, call (949) 494-5403.

First Sundays sponsors guitar trio

Laguna Beach Live! will present the Triada Guitar Trio in a free chamber music concert from 3 to 4:30 p.m. April 4 at LCAD.

The trio consists of brothers Nikola, Vasil and Petar Chekardzhikov from Bulgaria, who will perform classical and contemporary guitar works.

The three brothers studied guitar since early childhood with professor Ljuben Haralambiev in Varna, Bulgaria, and have studied at the graduate level with David Grimes at Cal State Fullerton.

LCAD is at 2222 Laguna Canyon Road. For more information, visit www.lagunabeachlive.org or call (949) 715-9713.

Japanese antique show coming soon

Kodo Arts Japanese Antique Show will take place from March 31 to April 4 at the Southern California Artists Assn., 3251 Laguna Canyon Road.

The show features Japanese art, furniture, bronzes, ceramics, home and garden decor, and textiles. Kodo Arts will also present a collection of kimono stencils, along with a lecture on the topic. The show will be open from 5 to 8 p.m. March 31 and from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. April 1 to 4.

For more information, call (949) 374-9617 or visit www.kodo-arts.com.

Art That’s Small submissions due

“Art That’s Small At City Hall,” an open exhibition coordinated by the city of Laguna Beach Arts Commission, is open for submissions. All works deemed acceptable will be exhibited at Laguna Beach City Hall, 505 Forest Ave.

Works that are no larger than 12 inches along any edge, including the frame, and 3 inches in depth, will be accepted. Artwork must be dry, suitably framed, secure and wired for wall hanging. No sawtooth hangers or sandwich glass will be accepted.

A fee of $15 will be charged with only one entry allowed per artist. Payment by check must be made payable to the city of Laguna Beach; cash is accepted. Works will be accepted from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Saturday at City Hall. Entries will be accepted from residents of Orange County (proof required), ages 18 or older. All entries must be original and have been executed within the past two years.