UPFRONT PLACES | PERSPECTIVES | HAPPENINGS
Q + A
A Creative Collective
ROBERT “ BOB ” ROSS , THE NEWLY APPOINTED PRESIDENT OF LAGUNA ART-A-FAIR , TALKS ABOUT HIS PASSION FOR COLLABORATION AND HIS VISION FOR THE FESTIVAL ’ S FUTURE .
By ASHLEY PROBST
O riginally a businessman , Robert “ Bob ” Ross accidentally became a commercial photographer after the photographer he hired to shoot images didn ’ t fit his vision for a project . He reshot it himself and the company ended up hiring him as a regular contributor . He later expanded his portfolio to include wildlife photography , which led him to a career as a professional artist .
One day , a friend encouraged him to try his hand at painting . “ Next thing I knew , I was selling paintings ,” says Ross , who has been exhibiting at Laguna Art-A-Fair for 15 years and was recently appointed president of the organization ’ s board of directors .
“ I love the arts … and I ’ ve been very involved with it for the last 40 years ,” Ross says . “… When you ’ re around artists , you have to just let the world go by and let your imagination take over .”
Over the years , Ross has fallen in love with Art-A-Fair and the artistic collective it has brought together — including his wife , Laura Curtin-Ross , who he met and married on the property near cascading waterfalls .
Here , Ross reflects on his professional journey and discusses his vision for the festival ’ s future , which he plans to achieve through a collaborative approach .
The colorful entrance to Laguna Art-A-Fair
know , why don ’ t you try to … jury in ?” So I did and I got juried in , and it was wonderful . I ’ ve been so happy there .
LBM : As an artist , what aspects of the festival resonate with you the most ? RR : We have such a vast variety of art . I mean , just things that I wouldn ’ t think of on my own . … It ’ s just amazing to see people ’ s imaginations soar and , at Art- A-Fair , we encourage our artists to work at their booths . … It ’ s amazing to stand there and watch them work . I ’ m in awe of some of these people .
Robert “ Bob ” Ross , the newly appointed president of Laguna Art-A-Fair |
LAGUNA BEACH MAGAZINE : Can you share a bit about your personal experience with Laguna Art-A-Fair ? ROBERT ROSS : My [ late ] wife [, Sarah ], and I were going to the shows [ in Laguna Canyon ] on a regular basis . … We walked into Art- A-Fair and fell in love with the atmosphere of the place , fell in love with the people there , with the art that was just so amazing . We thought it was fantastic , so we made … a point [ of ] coming back the next year and they had lots of new art — plus the artists that we liked so much the previous year — and we were just enthralled . … [ Sarah ] … said , “ You |
LBM : As the newly appointed president , what are your goals for the festival ? RR : I want to expand . … [ We ’ ve added ] a beer garden [ and ] Mediterraneanstyle restaurant in the back with tastings and different beers and wines and alcoholic drinks . … We ’ ve gone online with almost everything , and we ’ re selling tickets online . … We have workshops for everybody , every different style of workshops , [ like ] photography , … oil painting , [ acrylic ] pours . … We ’ re bringing in some really great bands this year . … We ’ re going to have professional |
BOTTOM : COURTESY OF LAGUNA ART-A-FAIR |
34 LAGUNABEACHMAGAZINE . COM |
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