LIFE OF SATELLITE GALLERY EXTENDED

The life of Laguna Art Museum’s satellite gallery in South Coast Plaza has been extended until at least March 22 to exhibit the work of Los Angeles artist Laurie Pincus.

Pincus’ show, which opens Thursday, features painted plywood figures arranged in various settings designed to reflect contemporary living, particularly in Hollywood’s movie industry.

During the exhibit’s run, the museum’s board of trustees will consider whether to keep the gallery open permanently. A committee is studying the possibility of turning it into a sales-rental emporium, as well as keeping it as a fine arts showcase. The gallery may also screen video art on a regular basis.

Thomas Tierney, board president, said the committee’s report will be evaluated at the Jan. 27 meeting. “We should be able to make a decision within 60 days after that,” he said. “Of course, we’ll have to see what the report says; maybe we’ll have to have further study.”

Even if a decision is not made by the close of Pincus’ exhibit, the board may still approve another show at the gallery. “This is like a business; we have to see how things go day-to-day,” Tierney said.

The satellite facility opened in October, 1984, to continue exhibitions during reconstruction of the main gallery in Laguna Beach, which reopened in September.

The museum must come up with a way to raise the satellite’s annual $190,000 operating cost. An indefinite rent-free arrangement with the mall’s operator, C.J. Segerstrom & Sons, saves the museum $90,000, but site costs total about $100,000 a year, museum director William Otton said.