Briefly In Arts And Entertainment

Artist honored by prestigious organization

Laguna Beach artist Mitch Ridder was recently honored with a California Watercolor Assn. Signature Membership for his recent painting, “Dublin Door.” It is now showing in the California Watercolor Assn.’s 39th National Exhibition in San Francisco.

“A Signature Membership is a lifetime membership,” Ridder said. “To qualify, an artist must have been accepted into three prior national shows. Although it’s the third time that my work has been accepted into the CWA National Exhibition, this is my very first Signature Membership for any watercolor association. It is a real honor.”

More than 700 entries from 30 states and three Canadian Provinces were submitted, but only 91 juried in.

Ridder’s artwork will be on exhibit, and for sale, at the Festival of Arts — California’s Premier Fine Art Exhibition, in Laguna Beach, from July 6 through Aug. 30.

For more information, call (949) 494-1145.

Gallery celebrates two years of exhibits

Endangered Planet Gallery, which showcases art with environmental and sustainability themes, celebrates its second anniversary with a two-month exhibition of sculptures, paintings and limited edition prints from all the artists featured in the gallery’s first two years.

Works by internationally-known Swedish painter and sculptor Karl Momen, who had a one-man show at Endangered Planet in September and October 2006 and an exhibition at the same time at Marion Meyer Contemporary Art, will be represented in the Endangered Planet group show with sculptures, paintings and two giclee images published by the gallery.

Other artists to be featured include Laguna Beach’s artist and sculptor Nicholas Hernandez, Los Angeles painter and collage artist June Phelps, San Francisco artist Keef Ward, Laguna Beach painter and collage creator Terrell, Northern California painter Dieter Tremp, and Laguna Beach artist Karen Adams.

Also to be exhibited are a new limited-edition print by the late master artist Laurel Burch, a new global-warmed themed sculpture from Norman Deesing, and new work by Laguna College of Art and Design student artist Francisca O’Toole, who is participating in a gallery mentoring program.

The exhibition opens Monday and will run through Jan. 31. The gallery will host a reception during Art Walk Dec. 6 to honor several of the artists attending, including Terrell, Hernandez, O’Toole and Adams. The event begins at 6 p.m.; admission is free and open to the public.