Laguna Art-A-Fair

Not a place for kids. Not interesting. Too expensive. Really pretty art but this is a money trap. Good if it is included in the price of the other fairs but not by it self.

I came to Art-​A-​Fair during Pageant of the Masters. There are very cool local artists displaying and selling their artwork. On this Friday night, entry was free, which was awesome. There was some beautiful work.

Local Artists displayng and selling their artwork. This place is a collective, so a lot of the artists actually work the ticket booth lines and etc. They are all friendly and super sweet. It’s a great place to walk around and look at many artists work.
Their is a café in the back if you get hungry.

Happiest Place on Earth!
Very cool art a nice restaurant in the back.
Just a nice place to visit.

Had a great time visiting Art-​A-​Fair before we headed to the Pageant of the Masters last Saturday night. The cool thing is that if you have a ticket to the Pageant, you get a free VIP season pass to Art-​A-​Fair which would really rock if you lived close by.
So Art-​A-​Fair is basically a showing of a myriad of artists from all over. They are set up in small booths where the artist can chat with the guests or work on new projects and display their artwork. You’ll find plenty of paintings and photography, but also some really unique sculptures, jewelry, ceramics, etc. It’s a great selection of different types of art and much of it was very beautiful and inspiring!
This is not just an exhibition, but everything is also for sale, but it’s art and it’s pricey. But, it was a really gorgeous afternoon and everyone there was so nice. We had a great time wandering through the stalls.
Inside you’ll also find a small restaurant, restrooms and there is a small stage set up where, while we were there, a young lady was singing.
It’s just a nice vibe wandering around and hearing the music and seeing the beautiful pieces. If you enjoy this sort of thing, you’ll like it here. I believe that regular price is $ 7 & $ 4 for seniors and military, but I might not have it exactly right. The show is ending for this year on the weekend, unfortunately, but they have it every year for two months in the summer.

The Art A Fair (AAF) is nice… but let’s be honest here. it’s kind of the red headed step child of the Pageant Art Scene. The Sawdust Festival is much better– but allow me to look at some of the positives before I dismiss it so quickly.
The AAF is covered for the most part. Sun is not a problem. It is cool, shady, and comfortable. This makes it nice to stroll on a Summer Laguna Day.
Inside the AAF is Tavoli Too– a beautiful and delicious place to have lunch. It is a popular wedding venue and for good reason. I do recommend it.
The AAF is much less crowded than the Sawdust Festival– lets not examine why but rather enjoy the fact that you can walk through with minimal interruption from crowds. Rarely if ever will you find a line to get in here. My money is on never.
Lastly– there is live music and just a little crowd which allows you to sit at a table and enjoy the band for awhile whereas at other places you may have to stand or the music area might be more crowded.
The art? Not as broad a spectrum as other nearby places (*cough* Sawdust) but you can find some amazing pieces nonetheless. There definitely wasn’t as many truly unique forms of art as I would have liked, but I still enjoyed walking through. I will continue to stop in whenever I’m in town for the Pageant.
Ah…one more thing… when I was there last time they had a random $ 7.00 pasta buffet in the middle of the venue. Not a bad option for a quick lunch.

This place inside the Tivoli Too courtyard is jam-​packed with artists and different creative creations. All types of things can be seen at this particular art festival. We are fortunate to know the newest and upcoming photographer from Laguna Beach area who had a booth at the festival (see booth B34).
The booths are in here tightly so its best enjoyed on a non weekend as it can easily be over crowded. On opening night we wandered thru this place and still havn’t seen every booth we had hoped to see. The amount of work here really will astound anyone. Everything from furniture, glass, vases, paintings, sculptures, jewelry, photography and tons more.
Its a sight to be seen and worth every moment to explore. $ 5 for wine or beer at the few bars within are heavily poored and friendly. Anyone can enjoy it, even on a date night.

I’d say a solid 3 ½ stars… art should never receive anything less.
I went Sunday with my roommate and it was a pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Parking is hard to find for free, most people parked in paid parking lots, but they made it very convenient and have free shuttles to the art festival from every parking lot and had little trollies driving people constantly so you never had to wait. I was lucky enough to find a spot on the side of the road for free and then just walk to the free shuttle pickup. I was also lucky enough to receive a free pass to the art festival so I’m not really sure how much it costs.
The art fair had a lot of local artists. Some were amazingly talented, and of course others were your boring street fair artists that you would expect to see in your local community. I loved the variety at the show. We saw everything from meticulous paintings of animals, to photography, to psychedelic paintings, to some amazing sculpting. There were definitely some talented painters, sculptors, and photographers at the show and it was nice to see their art in person.
Maybe I’m biased for being an artist and enjoying looking art art in person, but I had a good time and it was a relaxing way to spend the afternoon. The weather was pleasant and the place offered a very refreshing breeze that blew throughout the place constantly. If you get hungry they also have a bar, café, and restaurant inside which looked pretty nice.

This venue was a bit more quiet and calm compared to the Sawdust Festival. Many of the booths were unmanned, which allowed me to view all the artists works without the pressure of the artist trying to get me to buy something. I treated this place more like an art museum and then found myself thoroughly enjoying the art. Ok, another reason was I knew I couldn’t afford anything here, so it was strictly «look but don’t buy». They have periodic musicians come in and play which gave it a nice ambiance. There’s a restaurant inside, but I didn’t understand why people would pay an admission fee to come in and pay for a meal? Ok, back to the art… they were amazing and I really had my eye on some of the ceramic pieces. Since these artists come from all over the world, they tastes exhibited different cultures and styles. A place to come see!

I fully understand why artists make the kind of work they sell at Art-​a-​Fair. It’s a tough business, and to actually earn a living and pay the bills, they have to make their work popular for a mainstream audience. If you don’t mind looking at paintings of Italian landscapes, cats and ocean scenes over and over than you’ll have fun at this gallery. There are so many pieces packed into such a small space it is a little claustrophobic. I can fully imagine the wealthy OC art-​goers who will attend this festival to shop for something to hang in that corner by the breakfast nook. Like I said, I understand why this is fueled by supply and demand, but I didn’t say I enjoy the results. It’s pleasant, doesn’t make you think too hard and doesn’t offend anyone. Someone gave me these tickets so I can’t really complain, however, this isn’t the kind of art experience I was looking for.

Art A Fair is the youngest of the 3 art festivals (Sawdust Festival and Festival of Arts) that run concurrently during the summer months in Laguna Beach. Unlike its older sister, the Sawdust Festival, for artists to exhibit and sell their pieces at Art A Fair, they need to pass a jury of judges. So that basically means the artwork will on average be more expensive than what you’ll find at the Sawdust. The artists are also from all over the world, not just limited to Laguna Beach, so its more international in scope.
There are about 100 plus vendors, so its just half the size of the Sawdust. However, what it lacks in size, Art A Fair has something that both Sawdust and Festival of Arts: the Tivoli Terrace restaurant (also known as Tivoli Too!). I did a separate review of the Tivoli Terrace restaurant.
The restaurant ambiance alone is worth the price of admission which is $ 7.00. Unlike the other festivals, if you pay the admission price, you end up getting a season pass which is good for future visits for that summer. In that sense, it is a better deal money wise compared to the more popular Sawdust.
While my bf and I agreed that we liked the variety of artwork in Sawdust more, we actually ended up liking some specific artworks more in Art A Fair. So keep that in mind when comparing the festivals since art is subjective and beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Older children and teenagers might enjoy Art A Fair, but I don’t think it will keep a young child entertained.
For parking, I recommend going to the designated city lot that offers free bus trolley service to and from the festival grounds. The cost of parking is $ 7.00