Laguna Beach

Purchase Original Oil Paintings and Archival Quality Canvas Giclée Prints

Laguna Beach Art series featuring beach pictures of recognizable landmarks and everyday beach activities.

The Laguna Beach pictures created for this collection have been created over the course of the last twelve years by Orange County artist Steve Simon. Most of Simon’s Laguna Beach paintings were reproduced in his coffee-table book entitled “The Spirit of Laguna Beach” in 2002. “The Spirit of Laguna Beach” also features the Simon’s poetry written to complement each painting. In the introduction to the book, the Orange County artist poetically sums up his feelings for this enchanting city on the California Riviera thusly:

What, Where, When & How

What for tourists is a revisited destination

While home to a very fortunate population.

Where a quality of light as if in a dream

Falls from heaven or so it would seem.

When one marvels at such natural beauty

And realizes a good mood is almost a civic duty.

How one derives that the spirit of this place

Is blessed with a heaping helping of His grace.

Laguna Beach, California is is a seaside resort and artist community located in southern Orange County, California. It is home to some of the most picturesque beaches in southern California. The city is famous for its art galleries and summer art festivals.

The primary Laguna Beach art festivals include:

PAGEANT OF THE MASTERS: Featuring a rarely seen performance art known as tableau vivant in which human models and other props are used in creating life-size reproductions of famous paintings and new original works.

FESTIVAL OF ARTS: California's oldest and most prestigious art show, featuring 150 Southern California artists exhibiting a variety of mediums. The exhibition includes art demonstrations, workshops, entertainment, and food.

SAWDUST ART FESTIVAL: Set in an artists "village" in a wooded glen with sawdust (more accurately wood chips) covering the grounds. A decidedly pleasant ambience pervades the grounds with live music and natural elements such as waterfalls, the surrounding canyon, and eucalyptus trees.

ART-A-FAIR: Features fine art and master crafts by more than 150 winners of a national juried competition. Steve Simon exhibited at the ART-A-FAIR for three years from 2003 to 2005.

The history of Laguna Beach is also rich with artist lore. In fact, the city’s very founding owes much to artists. By the late 1800s, visitors were making summer trips to the beaches and canyons of undeveloped Laguna Beach. In 1903, a San Francisco painter named Norman St. Claire visited and returned home with reports of a beautiful place with captivating light. His landscape paintings supported his claim and soon artist friends followed him south. Plein air painters interested in capturing the atmospheric light St. Calire spoke of took particular interest. Plein Air artist William Wendt and California marine artist Frank Cuprien moved to Laguna Beach. Within a few years, Laguna Beach had a permanent population of about 300 residents, half of whom were artists. In 1918, famous landscape artist Edgar Payne opened an art gallery. The gallery would later become the Laguna Art Museum, one of the first art museums in the state.

From its humble artist beginnings, Laguna Beach has become a full-fledged resort town and jewel along the Orange County Coast. Today, it is home to dozens of upscale galleries and the Laguna Beach Arts are alive and well.

Thank you for visiting the Laguna Beach art collection of the Steve Simon on-line gallery. We hope you enjoy these Laguna Beach fine art paintings and prints.