Sawdust Art Festival puts on its seasonal coat with Winter Fantasy
Brian Giberson doesn’t claim to be much of a musician, but he is avid about assembling old and worn instruments onto totems.
“It’s a mixed media,” Giberson said outside his booth at the Sawdust Art Festival’s Winter Fantasy on Saturday. “They have a magical aura.”
The annual winter festival features art from within and outside the city — unlike its summer counterpart, which allows only Laguna Beach exhibitors.
Giberson, a Laguna Woods resident, marked his seventh year at the Winter Fantasy, where he shares a booth with his wife, artist Sheri Cohen. Nineteen years ago, the couple founded online jewelry design company Indigo Lights, which also sells Giberson’s specialities, paintings, digital art and the art objects he calls totems — long pieces of wood, each with a single musical instrument attached.
Cohen, a jeweler who creates bold and exotic designs and also teaches metalsmithing at the Irvine Fine Arts Center, has exhibited with her husband at hundreds of arts and crafts shows throughout the western United States.
Giberson’s interest in art was sparked when he helped a neighbor take a backyard gate to the curb to be thrown out. The piece’s deterioration inspired Giberson to reflect on the natural processes that cause things to break down over time.
He started incorporating musical instruments when he learned that people found the pieces to be too precious to throw away or give away. The guitars and woodwind instruments get a second life when they are applied to a new composition, he said.
“It’s a beautiful dynamic,” Giberson said.
Celebrating its 25th year, the Sawdust Art Festival’s annual Winter Fantasy, which runs weekends through Dec. 20, is a seasonal home to more than 175 artists who share their creative processes.
Visitors can view the art — from sculptures and ceramics, to woodwork and handblown glass — watch craft makers do their work, hear holiday music, enjoy food, see animals at a temporary petting zoo and sit in a wooden sleigh for photographs.
On Saturday morning, the Laguna Canyon setting was host to families and individuals admiring the handmade artwork. The nonprofit festival raises funds to educate the public about the arts through programs that provide hands-on creative experiences.
Festival exhibitor and jeweler David Nelson spoke about how the festival has evolved over the years, having marked his 25th exhibition anniversary at the Winter Fantasy and 46 years at the Sawdust Art Festival.
“It’s grown into this wonderful thing,” said Nelson, who sported a cuff bracelet embellished with in-laid stone and stamp work. “Now we have a waiting list and have people come from all over the world.”
Nelson, who is originally from Houston, became a Laguna Beach resident and first attended the Sawdust Art Festival in 1968. By the next year, he was selling wire and bead jewelry. In 1973, he taught himself how to craft silver jewelry and added rings, bracelets and money clips to his collection. He also custom-makes pieces in his booth.
“I do have 10 guys who work for me,” he said with a grin, referring to his hands as he held up 10 fingers. “This is what I do. Being an artist is my love and my passion.”
About 27 years ago, several artists wanted to hold a winter show on the festival grounds, Nelson noted. He became one of the original seven people who made Winter Fantasy happen. The group organizers used to rely on easy-to-put-up canopies, Nelson remembered.
“Sawdust has been a venue that’s allowed me to make a living,” Nelson said. “It’s not about making money, it’s about doing what you love. As artists, our true reward is to have people excited to have a piece of art. That’s what drives us and that’s our true payment.”
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IF YOU GO
What: Sawdust Art Festival’s Winter Fantasy
When: From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and Dec. 19 and 20
Where: Sawdust Art Festival, 935 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach
Cost: $4 to $7; children ages 5 and under admitted free
Information: (949) 494-3030 or visit sawdustartfestival.org
