Laguna Art Museum's ART + NATURE Brings Week-Long Events And Opens Artist Call For 2025

Laguna Art Museum invites visitors to engage with art and the environment at its 12th Annual Art + Nature. 

This multi-day celebration, designed to deepen connections between people and the environment, offers installations, performances and interactive workshops. Art + Nature showcases a variety of renowned artists, including Christian Sampson, Jay Defeo and Fred Tomaselli, whose works reflect themes of environmental awareness and artistic innovation. Highlights include Sampson’s solar installation Ocean Ions, a sustainable runway show and community-centered art projects.

Art + Nature Event Schedule:

• Saturday, November 2
  5-8 p.m.: Upcycled Couture – Laguna Art Museum’s first-ever sustainable runway show. Emerging designers from local universities, including UC Irvine’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts, Chapman University, Santa Ana College and FIDM, will compete in runway fashion design inspired by Art + Nature, each designed in collaboration with community partners. Enjoy cocktails, live entertainment and a runway show that creatively merges sustainability and high fashion. Proceeds benefit Art + Nature programming. 

• Sunday, November 3
  1-2 p.m.: Live! at the Museum: Fabio Zini – Renowned Argentinian guitarist Fabio Zini performs live, bringing the beauty of nature to life through music in the museum gallery.

• Thursday, November 7
  10 a.m.: Ocean Ions Outdoor Installation Opens – Christian Sampson’s installation, a vibrant display at Main Beach and Heisler Park, uses color and light to create a multisensory experience.
  6-9 p.m.: First Thursdays Art Walk – Explore new exhibitions and installations at the museum, with docent-led tours enhancing the experience.

• Saturday, November 9
  10 a.m.-1pm.: Portrait of Place Community Art Workshop – Artist and scientist Oriana Poindexter leads this collaborative workshop at the Main Beach Cobblestones, where participants use historic photography techniques to capture the marine ecosystem and ocean specimens. Artworks created will be displayed at LCAD’s Downtown Gallery.
  4 p.m.: Ocean Ions Performance – A visually dynamic performance on Main Beach, featuring Volta Collective dancers interacting with Sampson’s artwork, enhanced by costumes painted by artist Ariel Dill. This immersive collaboration will bring art, nature and performance together in a visually stunning and dynamic display.

• Sunday, November 10
  10 a.m.-5 p.m.: Free Museum Day – Enjoy a free day at your museum in celebration of Art + Nature. Free admission includes docent tours, refreshments, live poetry writing and access to all three indoor exhibitions. 

• Monday, November 11
  10 a.m.-5 p.m.: Drawing for the Planet: The Tiger’s Forest – Join artist and Drawing for the Planet founder Jane Lee McCracken for a conservation-focused art workshop centered on Bengal and Malayan tigers. Participants will create expressive ballpoint pen drawings as part of The Tiger’s Forest project, which raises awareness and funds for tiger conservation in partnership with the international wildlife charity Born Free.

Additional Art + Nature Exhibitions

Beyond the scheduled events, Laguna Art Museum presents three compelling exhibitions. Christian Sampson’s Ocean Ions Laguna (through February 2, 2025) offers a solar projection installation that transforms the museum lobby through changing colors and reflections, encouraging cosmic contemplation. Fred Tomaselli: Second Nature (through February 2, 2025) merges social issues, nature and popular culture in intricate resin paintings and New York Times collages, providing a visually layered commentary on contemporary life. Jay DeFeo: Trees (through January 12, 2025) traces DeFeo’s exploration of natural resilience, from 1950s drawings to 1970s black-and-white photography of Bay Area trees, blending abstraction with representation.