UPFRONT PLACES | PERSPECTIVES | HAPPENINGS
Q + A
Once Upon a Time
STEP INTO THE ENCHANTED FOREST TO EXPERIENCE A WORLD OF WONDER AT THE MUSEUM OF MAKE BELIEVE .
By ASHLEY RYAN
W himsy and wonder abound at the Museum of Make Believe , a new nonprofit art space that opened along South Coast Highway in the spring . Founded in 2020 in the midst of the pandemic , the museum has been a long time coming .
“ We were doing traveling exhibits to other museums , and that really just sort of sparked our love for combining storytelling and art ,” says museum co-founder Amy Mitchell . “ Our fourth or fifth show , it was like , what if we had our own place , … did it ourselves and weren ’ t continually traveling [ with ] this very delicate work ?”
Amy , who holds a degree in poetry , created the words for the inaugural exhibit , “ Ghost Stories & Fairy Tales ,” while her husband , Geoff Mitchell , serves as the main artist . Step into the Enchanted Forest the couple has created entirely by hand and you ’ ll be met with paintings , audio , miniatures , written stories and more . It ’ s a playground for the imagination , too , offering treasure hunts , special prizes and illustrated storybooks filled with all the tales within the museum .
Although they hope to eventually move into a larger space , they are now focused on bringing an ever-changing collection of innovative pieces to this location . Read on to learn more about the Mitchells , their creations and how they hope to shape visitors through their artwork .
LAGUNA BEACH MAGAZINE : What do you hope to inspire with the Museum of Make Believe ? AMY MITCHELL : At our ribbon cutting , we had a little girl come in with a notepad and she was drawing pictures and writing her own stories in the exhibit . That ’ s what we want to see — and hopefully that will be the next generation and the next . So that ’ s what we ’ d love to try to spark .
LBM : When it comes to the creative process , what do you enjoy most ? GEOFF MITCHELL : Seeing it happen — because most of the time , I have no idea what ’ s coming next myself . … Working with other people , I ’ m always saying [ we rely on ] imagination , but I think a lot of that is listening to the things around you and thinking , I ’ ll tell a story about that . … But there were so many things that we didn ’ t plan for [ in this space ]. It ’ s exciting making it up as you go , just taking the chance and seeing what happens .
Amy and Geoff Mitchell , co-founders of the Museum of Make Believe
LBM : Do you have one favorite part of the museum ? AM : It ’ s probably the dog [ in “ Shooting Star ”] because that was after our dog , Sparrow . Sparrow was my little soulmate . … When we first got this space , he was almost 18 . And he came with us every day . He had no clue what was going on . But he used to sleep right behind the tree there and there ’ s a little note to him back there that says , “ We miss you , Sparrow .” … I really wrote the story for him .
THIS SPREAD : ASHLEY RYAN
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