Cultural Arts Plan Receives Unfavorable Review

Editor,

Village Laguna appreciates that the cultural arts plan has provided the opportunity and forum for focusing on the artistic life of our community.

Unfortunately, the plan’s recommendations seem to be almost solely based on opinions expressed in a community survey in which 40 percent of the respondents do not live in Laguna Beach. The Plan also jumps to an unwarranted conclusion that a new cultural arts facility is needed, yet the public workshop group devoted to that topic concluded that better use of existing facilities is preferred.

The plan recommends against considering the movie theatre as a possible community arts venue, yet it proposes a new large cultural facility with no location identified.

Although the plan includes an inventory and description of existing facilities, it doesn’t tell us why they’re insufficient. In addition, the necessary analyses of existing programs, assets, and participants are missing or incomplete. There ought to be inventories of existing arts programs, of public art (along with a professional evaluation of the collection), of artists residing and/or working in Laguna and their housing and studio situations, and of community arts education programs and organizations  (are there overlaps or gaps?), and an assessment of the operation and roles of the arts commission.

Acknowledging that the local fundraising environment is difficult, the Plan relies heavily on funding from the city to sustain and expand the arts. Given that the city has many funding obligations, we should choose only those projects that contribute most to the welfare of the community as a whole. We suggest that the city explore a potential role as a facilitator, helping various organizations work cooperatively to meet the community’s arts needs.

While we question whether constructing new artists’ housing is either desirable or financially sound, we support programmatic ways and subsidies to assist our artists to stay in Laguna: ideas that come to mind include “fringe festivals,” the use of empty retail space for popup shows, expansion of the farmers’ market to include art, vouchers for housing, grants for supplies.

Our artists settled here because the place inspired them and the moment was right—no one planned it. It seems likely that Laguna Beach will continue to inspire artists the same way it always has. Rather than artificially directing the artist community to become an art colony with international cachet, the cultural arts plan should focus on providing an open, creative atmosphere and fostering public interest and participation.

Johanna Felder, Laguna Beach
The author is president of Village Laguna.