‘The Art of Music Experience,’ Visual Art Gallery and Heroes Hall Museum are spots in Costa Mesa’s annual extravaganza you shouldn’t miss if you’re into visual art.
There’s more to the OC Fair than smoked turkey legs, dozing giant pigs, funnel cake fried chicken sandwiches (with hot honey), humongous stuffed Pokémon characters and rides that will turn your stomach inside out.
Visual art abounds at the fair, but you have to be on the lookout for it. Rewards await for those who put art on their list of things to see and do at the annual summertime extravaganza in Costa Mesa.
‘The Art of Music Experience’
This collection of hand-painted album covers, photographs and more returns for round two this year in the Huntington Beach Building. You can access this hall through the Main Mall, the Santa Ana Pavilion or – my favorite way – through the relaxed and shady Winetasting Courtyard. (Try a tasting of award-winning wines for $5 while you’re at it!)
New album covers this year include “Morrison Hotel” by The Doors, “The World is a Ghetto” by WAR, “Ill Communication” by the Beastie Boys, “Morning Phase” by Beck and “Unclogged” by X. One set of panels highlights the “Morrison Hotel” photography of Henry Diltz.
PHOTO 1: An installation view of "The Art of Music Experience." PHOTO 2: The Ranker Station allows visitors to plop in their top 10 albums of all time in various genres. PHOTO 3: An interactive portion of the exhibit at "The Art of Music Experience." PHOTOS 4, 5: An installation view of "From Abbey Road to Hotel California," a retrospective of the album cover designs of Kosh, in "The Art of Music Experience."Photos courtesy of "The Art of Music Experience"/Robert Rodriguez
A section near the main entrance highlights the album covers designed by John Kosh, who goes by the singular name Kosh. The former creative director for Apple Records, Kosh designed the covers for “Abbey Road” and “Let it Be” by the Beatles, “Hotel California” by the Eagles, “Get Yer Ya Ya’s Out!” and “Through the Past, Darkly” by the Rolling Stones, “Who’s Next” by the Who, more than 25 album covers for Linda Ronstadt, and dozens of album and single covers for John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Ringo Starr, James Taylor, Rod Stewart, ELO, Jimmy Buffett and the Pointer Sisters. Three of his designs for Ronstadt won Grammy Awards for Best Album Package.
“Telling the story of an album – it’s an art itself,” Kosh, a British transplant who lives in L.A., said during a recent interview. “I always like to get very, very involved with the artist. I hope to develop a relationship and go over things. It’s quite laborious, but it’s a labor of love.”
Kosh will be present Saturday at “The Art of Music Experience’s” Fingerprints Records pop-up shop, signing ELO prints and albums he designed. The event is scheduled to start at 5 p.m.
As for all of the hand-painted album covers, they range from 1960s rock through the ‘80s, ‘90s and aughts to contemporary acts like St. Vincent and Taylor Swift. Music is regularly pumping into the hall, cocktails and coffees are for sale, and live painting occurs daily from 3-9 p.m. There’s a Ranker Station where visitors can plop in their top 10 albums of all time in various genres, and there are two photo props – the Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” and David Byrne’s big white suit from “Stop Making Sense” – where visitors can insert their faces and take pictures.
“The Art of Music Experience” is a cool exhibit, but is it an original art experience? The vast majority of works on view are copied from already existing material – album covers. They say imitation is the highest form of flattery, so it’s certainly a deferential experience.
Still, “The Art of Music Experience” is a good time and worth the visit, although a certain 7-year-old who shall remain nameless said some of the album covers freaked him out.
Visual Arts & Woodworking Gallery
Nestled in the Los Alamitos Building off the Main Mall is the Visual Arts Gallery, which features fine art and photography from artists across California (most of them O.C. residents), but now has incorporated woodworking. Those with some OC Fair memory may recall that woodworking used to be located in the Anaheim Building, closer to The Hangar.
But this year, the woodworking exhibits and demonstrations have been squeezed into Los Alamitos, and I’m not sure if it’s the best fit. The relocation leaves less space for photography and fine arts.
Indeed, overall visual art submissions were down this year, from 4,768 in 2023 to 4,365 in 2024, according to Stephen Anderson, exhibits and education coordinator for the fair.
“Accepted target numbers were reduced to better accommodate the allotted space for display,” he said.
In photography, there were 3,064 total entries and 723 accepted, which is about a 23.6% acceptance rate. In fine art, there were 1,161 total entries and 452 accepted, about a 38.9% acceptance rate. In woodworking, there were 140 total entries and 123 accepted, a higher 87.9% acceptance rate.
This year, the visual arts exhibition is smaller and more concentrated. Contributions from the Laguna College of Art + Design are no longer featured, unfortunately. I didn’t see as many judges’ submissions, if any at all.
The quality of work ranges widely, as most of the artists and photographers are not professionals at their craft. Landscape photography is strong, as it is every year. Some highlights include: “The Pilgrim,” a painting by youth artist Wei Feng; “Crossroads” and “Butterfly Dreams,” an acrylic and acrylic with mixed media by JoJo Collins; “Tiki 59,” a mixed media with hand-cut oak wood pieces by David Adams; “Fighting Birds,” a vector drawing by James Van Eimeren; “From Wind & Water,” a photograph by Oli Beamish; “Leading the Pow Wow,” a color photograph by Ken Furuta; “Welcome to Nice,” a color photograph by Scott Rinaldi; “Prayers for a Successful Hunt,” a Native American basket “illusion” made with solid maple by Richard Haagsma; “Ancient Life,” a color photograph by Susan Coppock; “Self Portrait in Red,” a color photograph by Norman Johnson; and “Souls of San Geronimo, NM,” a black and white photograph by Peter Phelps.
There is a wall worth spending some time with titled “Rides & Rhythm,” featuring the OC Fair photography of Mike Goulding and Miguel Vasconcellos – both longtime former OC Register photographers.
The fair has one featured fine artist, Jacqueline Valenzuela from Whittier/Los Angeles. Her work wasn’t up when I visited, but it should be on view now through Aug. 18, the end of the fair.
Valenzuela is a Chicana/LGBTQ+-identifying artist who’s pushing the boundaries of the traditionally male and straight lowrider car scene. She’s also made her mark in the regional fine art scene with work that combines “high” and “low” art. You can read more about her in this article.
Valenzuela will be painting on-site in the Visual Arts Gallery on Aug. 10-11 and 16-18.
There will also be daily workshops where kids can build and color their own cardboard lowriders in the OC Promenade. And a Zoot suit fashion show will run at 5 p.m. on Aug. 3, 4 and 11. It will be hosted by El Pachuco Zoot Suits from Fullerton. The Anaheim Building – housing home arts, as usual – will be exhibiting a pair of Zoot suits and traditional dresses through the run of the fair.
And now (drumroll please), here are the fair’s Best of Show winners:
Martin Collett, “The Manawa Maikai Aquarium,” in the fine arts/3D/sculpture category;
Shane Mesquit, “Channeling in Technicolor,” in the fine arts/2D/painting category;
Jaein Ryu, “See What is Hidden,” in fine arts/young adult/2D/drawing;
Scott Farrell, “Fog & Granite,” in black and white photography;
Vinod Krishnan, “Path to Quench,” in color photography;
Isayah Jimenez, “The Film,” in black and white youth photography;
Bill Churchill, “Chief Iron Tail,” in woodworking/sculpture;
David Ortega, “Standing Tall” (a grandfather clock), in woodworking/furniture.
PHOTO 1: "The Manawa Maikai Aquarium," a sculpture made of wood, silverware, piano keys and other materials by Martin Collett of Santa Ana. This work won Best of Show in the 3D fine art category at the OC Fair. PHOTO 2: "Fog & Granite," a photograph by Scott Farrell of Trabuco Canyon. This piece won Best of Show in the black and white photo category at the OC Fair. PHOTO 3: "What is Hidden," a drawing by Jaein-See Ryu of IRvine. This work won Best of Show in the young adult fine arts category at the OC Fair. PHOTO 4: "Channeling in Technicolor," an oil on wood by Shane Mesquit of Westminster. This work won best of show in the 2D fine art category at the OC Fair. PHOTO 5: "The Film," a black and white photo by Isayah Jimenez. This piece won the Best of Show for the youth photography category at the OC Fair. PHOTO 6: "Chief Iron Tail," a Native American bust by Bill Churchill, won Best of Show in the woodworking/sculpture category at the OC Fair. PHOTO 7: "Standing Tall," a grandfather clock by David Ortega of Menifee, won Best of Show in the woodworking/furniture category at the OC Fair. PHOTO 8: "Path to Quench," a photograph by Vinod Krishnan of Irvine. This piece won Best of Show in the color photography category at the OC Fair. Images courtesy of OC Fair.
Heroes Hall Museum
A visual arts excursion at the OC Fair would not be complete without a stop at the Heroes Hall Museum. On view now through Dec. 22 is “The Vietnam War through the Art & Photography of Ed Bowen.”
This moving, boots-on-the-ground display offers an up-close and personal view of the Vietnam War through the eyes of combat artist Ed Bowen, featuring more than 30 paintings and sketches, alongside letters, memorabilia and photographs.
Bowen was a Southern California teacher and artist who was drafted into the U.S. Army in the fall of 1967, just a few months into his teaching career. He was initially trained as a helicopter door-gunner after his draft, but his talents led him to reassignment as a combat artist.
PHOTO 1-4: An installation view of "The Vietnam War Through the Art & Photography of Ed Bowen" at the Heroes Hall Museum at the OC Fair. PHOTO 5-6: An installation view during the May 11 opening reception of "The Vietnam War Through the Art & Photography of Ed Bowen" at the Heroes Hall Museum at the OC Fair. Photos courtesy of OC Fair.
According to the text panels, the majority of the paintings in the show were done many years after Bowen returned from Vietnam. He retired to a family home in Corona del Mar and felt compelled to pick up his pen and paintbrush again, to recreate images of the conflict he had tried hard to forget.
Bowen passed away in December 2023, after years of working with Heroes Hall to prepare for this exhibition. His legacy lives on through this showcase, which stands as a tribute to the artist, his family and his network within the veteran community.
Admission to Heroes Hall Museum is free with fair admission. The museum is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays during the run of the fair. Non-fair hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays.
OC Fair
Where: 88 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa
When: Through Aug. 18
Hours: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays; 11 a.m.-midnight Fridays and Saturdays
Cost: $13-$15 for general admission, $9 for seniors 60 and older and children 6-12; free for kids 5 and younger; tickets need to be purchased in advance
Contact: (714) 708-1500 or ocfair.com
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