Laguna College

Chapman University this month is offering a rare glimpse at Laguna Beach artists, curated by local sculptor Nick Hernandez. Hernandez was given the opportunity to curate two shows at the college's Guggenheim Gallery . The first show, "Immortal Coils," will focus on Hernandez, Mia Tavanotti and Jorg Dubin. Other artists include Mark Garry, Sia Abderazai, Chris Santley, Josh Hoy, Cassey Parlette and Christiana Lewis. His second show, a Latino showcase, will open June 9. "We've got the fight, we've got the insight" will feature Felipe Castaneda, Nadia Jaime and Arturo Guevera among others.

After nearly six years in North Laguna, Whelan Gallery will be closing its doors at the end of the month. Owner Patrick Whelan said he was told last month that he had until the end of May to vacate the space at 353 N. Coast Hwy. He sublets it from Adam Neeley, who has decided not to renew the lease, Whelan said. According to Whelan, he had no plans to leave any time soon before this. The gallery was "doing alright," he said, and "holding its own. " He said it's not the last that Laguna will see of the gallery.

Friday Crisis Communication Workshop The Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce presents its Business Breakfast Series #2, a "Crisis Communication Workshop," from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Aliso Creek Inn, 31106 S. Coast Hwy. The workshop will talk about how to deal with intense media scrutiny in a crisis. Tickets are $15 for members, $25 for non-members. RSVP to (949) 494-1018 or karen.lagunabeachchamber@gmail.com . Laguna Beach Garden Club Nursery owner and horticulturist Robin Parer will speak at the next Laguna Beach Garden Club meeting, which begins at 9:30 a.m. in Tankersley Hall at Laguna Presbyterian Church, 415 Forest Ave. For more information, visit http://www.lagunabeachgardenclub.org.

Two new faces on LCAD board The Laguna College of Art & Design's board of trustees has elected two new members, Suzanne Chonette and Nancy Bushnell, officials announced this week. Chonette graduated with a bachelor's in 1990 from the Art Institute of Southern California, which later became LCAD, and she is a pastel and oil painter now showing at the Desert Art Center in Palm Springs, according to a news release from LCAD . She also has been involved in important functions with organizations such as the American Heart Assn., the Guilds of the Performing Arts Center, Bowers Museum, Children's Hospital of Orange County and the Assistance League of Santa Ana, the release noted.

In his red BMX outfit, helmet and matching Vans shoes, Ben Fong rode into the crowded classroom on his bike and popped a wheelie in front of the three visiting Nike executives. Fong, a senior at the Laguna College of Art & Design, on Thursday morning was acting the role of BMX biker Jimmie Johnson. He was part of a team of four graphic design LCAD students pitching the "Nike Track It" phone app concept to the executives who had flown in from Nike's corporate headquarters in Beaverton, Ore. Simply explained, the concept presented by the team of Fong, Matt Dawson, Charlene Chand and Chay Land was a data-tracking device built into the bike, which transmits data to a mobile phone to show how a BMX biker performs on a particular circuit.

Laguna Art Museum 307 Cliff Drive (949) 494-8971 http://www.lagunaartmuseum.org Open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays and Fridays through Sundays; 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays; and closed Wednesdays. Admission is $7 for adults and $5 for seniors, students and active military. Children younger than 12 are admitted for free. The museum is closed on the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's days. Current shows: Until May 20: Works from the collection representing artists who worked in California in the late 19th and early 20th centuries is on view in the upstairs gallery.

Just say no to underage drinking The Boys & Girls Clubs of Laguna Beach, in conjunction with the South Orange County Coalition, will participate in a community alcohol prevention activity called Sticker Shock at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday. The event — in which youth will visit off-sale alcohol outlets (retailers that sell alcohol for consumption outside of their stores) and place prevention message stickers on alcohol multi-packs — aims to remind buyers that it is illegal to provide alcohol to anyone younger than 21, according to a news release.

Steven Dicterow on Sunday kicked off his fourth official run for City Council. [Seven-degrees] owner Mark Orgill hosted the kick-off event, which drew an enthusiastic crowd of an estimated 250 supporters, including Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach), to cheer Dicterow's decision to run for a fourth term and his strategy for winning. "No candidate will outwork me," said Dicterow, an attorney. "I am already going door-to-door. But I also know I need your help. " Cribbing from Abraham Lincoln, Dicterow said, "Without your help, I cannot win. With your help, I cannot lose.

More than 1,000 pounds of clay is being tossed across a Costa Mesa artist's studio against a wooden amalgamation of nails and wire, eventually taking the shape of a woman's figure. Alrik Yuill, 33, is busy sculpting his latest piece, "In Bloom: The Girl and the Music. " On Saturday, the Costa Mesa native and Laguna College of Art + Design graduate will be showing the "in progress" state of his piece at his studio on Placentia Avenue. Much like his work, Yuill stands out. His denim jacket is spray painted with the words "space" and "time" on the back.

Laguna College of Art & Design has a new library, a new exhibit, two new curriculum tracks and 23 new students to start the New Year. "Enrollment for the spring semester is 440 full-time students from 23 states and 18 countries," LCAD President Jonathan Burke told the City Council at the Jan. 24 meeting. The semester started Jan. 16. Entertainment Illustration is being offered in the illustration major, which focuses on storyboarding, visual development for live-action television, film and animation, environmental design for performance venues and theme parks, and digital matte painting for live-action film and animation.