Each month, Sandstone Gallery features a collection of work of by a Guest Artist in the ‘Skylight Room’, a beautiful space lit by gallery and natural light, located in the center of our gallery.
Upcoming Guest Artists and their exhibition dates are listed below. Please click on an image to learn more about the artist and view some examples of their work.
Guest Artists are chosen based on their professional presentation, quality and skill in their medium, use of design principles, and how well they complement the work of the eleven Southern California artists we represent. If you are interested in exhibiting as a Guest Artist in Sandstone Gallery, link to “Open Call for Guest Artists” from our menu for more information.
BIO
As long as I could remember creativity has been a big part of my life. Early classes in music and painting ignited a life long journey and opened up a pathway that I continue to explore. Wanting to blend art and business, I graduated from California State University of Long Beach with a BFA in Illustration and Marketing. I chose the business end of the art industry and I have been fortunate enough to represent some of the most talented commercial artists in the business. Their talent has contributed to the visibility of some of the most iconic Brands. Covid created “unexpected’ free time which enabled me to rekindle my passion for creating. Experimenting and playing with various mediums and techniques lead me to to abstract work . I love the freedom to express myself. Living in Southern California for the majority of my life enjoying ocean, desert and mountains has a huge influence on my life and ultimately my art.
ARTIST STATEMENT
“My work reflects my internal response to the natural elements that surround me from the shifting light to pieces of nature that draw me in…leaves on the ground, kelp washing up on the shore, pedals that lay on the concrete.
Textures and patterns invite me to interpret them using mediums that I love including paint, inks, water soluble pencils and the irresistible colors and textures of pastel. My work is a spontaneous process starting with a loose idea and moving in present time laying down intuitive marks, brush strokes and color themes; each mark and brush stroke leads to the next intuitive expression. Dark, light and movement are often a recurring theme in my work, showing the depth, tension and diversity that often reflects are complex lives.
Mixed Media on Canvas - 36 × 36
Mixed Media on Canvas - 30 × 40
Mixed Media on Canvas - 30 × 40
Mixed Media on Board - 12 ¾ x 12 ¾
Collage, Mixed Media on Board - 12 ¼ x 12 ¼
Collage, Mixed Media on Board - 12 ¼ 12 ¼
Collage, Mixed Media on Board - 12 ¼ x 12 ¼
Acrylic on Board - 4 panel series - 8 × 8
Acrylic on Board - 12 ¼ x 12 ½
COMMUNITY ART PROJECT is pleased to showcase the art of Barbara Bond, Sherry Salito-Forsen and Christopher Paul Scardino during March 2026 at Sandstone Gallery.
CAP’S MISSION STATEMENT is to increase the visibility and appreciation of art and serve as a catalyst for art education.
Community Art Project (CAP) is a non-profit arts organization established in 1998. Among the founding directors were former members of the Laguna Beach Arts Commission, whose vision was to fill needs not met by existing City and private art organizations, including the facilitation of placing artwork on privately owned sites. Since its inception, CAP has partnered with dozens of artists and private property owners in the downtown area to install sculptures and murals in public view.
Be sure to see CAP’s latest mural installation Ripple Effect, dedicated in February 2022, at 328 Glenneyre at the corner of Mermaid Street. This colorful mural was created by Timothy Robert Smith with 14 students from his mural art class at Laguna College of Art + Design.
CAP also curates art exhibits at locations within Laguna Beach to showcase area artists. Contact us if you have an exhibit venue, are an artist wishing to be considered for exhibition or a public art installation, or to offer ideas on private property sites for future art installations. Learn more at caplaguna.org
SHERRY SALITO-FORSEN
Sherry Salito Forsen has been working with glass since 1976. She originally started her glass career working for a stained glass studio and creates fused glass art.
Assisted by her talented husband, this has opened up many exciting new avenues of expression and creativity. They are currently exploring multi-media collaborations. Their studio provides original, one-of-a-kind kiln formed glass for public, private and corporate spaces. Studio services range from initial conception to the fabrication and sometimes installation of the final artwork.
CHRISTOPHER SCARDINO
I started my journey at 25 when the death of my father toppled my world up to that point. Without an art background whatsoever, I began to draw and paint and struggle with my grief. I needed this, whatever it was. After finding my way to the Laguna College of Art & Design in Laguna Beach, California, I was on the path to what would be the great passion of my life. I thrust myself into this world that was foreign to me and embraced every step. After studies in Classical Realism, I graduated in 2002 and exhibited in many galleries from Laguna Beach to North Carolina. I found that the non-objective world held more for me than merely copying what was before me.
Abstraction, in all its forms, became my vehicle to express what I was incapable of saying out loud. This fire, grief, exhilaration and curiosity is still with me today and possibly even to a greater degree as time passes. I enjoy the process of problem-solving, even if it’s me who is creating the problems.
I explore soft and hard edges, bold and passive color, areas of a work that may be quiet or quite agitated and loud. The masculine and feminine counterparts play a role in my work. I feel the weight of color, line and light and the need to find an equilibrium for the piece, but also for myself.
With more and more frequency, I enjoy the idea of making something from nothing. Something vital. Something alive. Something to engage the viewer. Something.
https://www.scardinofineart.com
https://www.instagram.com/scardinofinearts.com
BARBARA BOND
As Barbara states, “We are surrounded by bold and delicate, hard and soft, light and heavy in our everyday lives. I was once asked why I decide to put a metal saw blade next to a fragile piece of textured glass. I responded that it was the same reason I love to lift heavy weights and wear high heels. I love the juxtaposition and the contrast. My art is a reflection of how I live my life.”
Multi Media on Fused Glass - 23 × 26 × 5
Multi Media on Fused Glass - 3 3/8 × 33
Multi Media on Fused Glass - 40 × 60
Mixed Media on wood- 38 X 38
Mixed Media on wood - 36 X 36
Mixed Media on Wood - 24 X 24
Mixed Media on Glass - 25.25 × 21.25
Mixed Media on Glass - 11 × 23
Mixed Media on Glass - 18”
Bio
During my business career, I always made time to study and admire abstract art. I was particularly drawn to works by Robert Rauschenberg, Richard Diebenkorn, Helen Frankenthaler, Paul Klee and Alberto Burri.
Shortly after my retirement, I decided to give painting a try. Now, twenty years later, I’m an abstract artist living in Carmel, California, with a studio not far from my home. I give many thanks to on-line lessons from Nicholas Wilton, Robert Szot, Judy Woods, Pamela Caughey and others.
My work has appeared in Galleries in Carmel, Carmel Valley, Pacific Grove and Denver. I’ve also been fortunate to have several one-person shows.
Read my statement below to learn about my purpose and methods
Artist Statement and Process
“A memory is a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone.” Unknown
For me, painting is a rejuvenating experience that helps me unlock memories that have given meaning to my life.
I always start without a plan, spontaneously applying many layers of acrylic paint and pencil to create shapes, colors, value differences, texture and depth.
I play music while I work which triggers memory formation. I recall people, places, events, living creatures, feelings and emotions…..it’s like a slideshow in my mind.
Gradually, as I work, a specific memory begins to dominate my thinking. This phase is like sharpening the focus on a camera. For several days or more, I add and subtract elements until I feel like I’ve captured the essence of that moment in time and the memory is new again.
Finally, I create a title that communicates the meaning of my painting. I’m pleased when my work prompts viewers to recall and share their memories.
Website: www:leecoxartist.com
http://Instagram.com/Leecox.artist
Acrylics on Canvas - 24 × 24
Mixed Media on Canvas - 20 × 20
Acrylics on Canvas - 24 × 24
Acrylics on Canvas - 24 × 24
Acrylics on Canvas - 30 × 24
Acrylics on Canvas - 12 × 12
BIO
Sean Barrett is an award-winning Southern California-based Watercolorist. His work has earned him signature status in prestigious watercolor societies, such as the National Watercolor Society, American Watercolor Society, Transparent Watercolor Society of America and Watercolor West.
Furthermore, his watercolors have been published in books and magazines, such as Watercolor Artist Magazine.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I have genuinely loved painting with watercolors for the past 25 years. I am drawn to the medium for its complexity and intimacy, as well as its ability to stand confidently alongside other traditional mediums such as oil. I firmly believe watercolor is both versatile and powerful.
In each painting, I challenge myself to tell a story. Through this process, I aim to communicate emotion to the viewer - one of my greatest goals as an artist. An overarching theme in my work is hope, which drives me to seek beauty in any subject matter, no matter how weathered, broken, or decayed it may be.
Watercolor on Paper - 21 × 21
Watercolor on paper - 40 × 20
Watercolor on paper - 40 × 20
Watercolor on paper - 15 × 20
Watercolor on Paper - 23 × 33
ARTIST'S STATEMENT
Laabu Kan Ga Borey
The drawings, paintings, collages and mixed-media in this series celebrate the landscapes in Niger, West Africa and Laguna Beach, CA. While halfway across the world, and each with unique cultures and lifestyles, both terrains hold the radiant sun, bold colors reflecting off vibrant foliage, and trees whose trunks meander toward embracing skies.
This solo exhibition pays tribute to these topographies with colorful imagery and monochromatic art pieces. Laabu Kan Ga Borey in Djarma translates as the “loveliest of lands.” Lines dance across paper like the whimsical clouds in the sky, values and shades define tree bark, and colorful paper embodies sunrays.
The abstraction in this series allows viewers to experience peace and harmony by considering the relation of these majestic terrains.
BIO
Gretchen Beck served as Professor of Art, Chair of the Art Department, Curator and on the faculty at Concordia University, Irvine, CA, for eleven years. She also served in the Peace Corps for three years in Niger, West Africa and has conducted artistic research there with undergraduate students for her art production. Currently, she is a professional exhibiting artist.
She exhibits and discusses her work in juried group and solo exhibitions in galleries, on national and international levels. Her recent juried exhibitions include: Emotions, MVA Art Gallery, Bethlehem, PA, June – July 2025; Passage of Life: Aging 2025, Exhibizone, Vancouver, BC, Canada, May – July 2025; 2nd Annual Abstraction: Forms, Lines, Colors – 2025, Gallerium Art Gallery, Vancouver BC, Canada, April – June 2025; The Surreal Spectacle, Art Scene West Gallery, San Diego, CA, April – May 2025; Identity, Livermore Valley Arts Center, Uncle Credit Union Art Gallery, Livermore, CA, March – May 2025; Colorful Symphony 2025, Exhibizone, Vancouver, Canada; February – April 2025; and SoloS 17th International Online Solo Exhibition, Exhibizone, Vancouver BC, Canada, January – February 2025.
She also is a represented artist at the NoonPowell Fine Art Gallery www.noonpowellfineart.com in London, England and at the Sector Seven Contemporary Art Gallery https://s7cag.com/ in South Pasadena, CA. For further information about her work in the visual arts, please contact her at gretchenjo.beck@gmail.com and you can view her art at
Mixed Media on Wooden Panel - 18 × 24
Mixed Media on Wooden Panel - 18 X 24
Mixed Media on Wooden Panel - 18 X 24
Mixed Media on Wooden Panel - 16 X 16
Mixed Media on Wooden Panel - 16 X 16
Mixed Media on Wooden Panel - 18 X 24
Mixed Media on Wooden Panel - 16 X 16
Mixed Media on Wooden Panel - 24 X 18
I think of the process of painting as an activity in meditative expression. When it works, the lines, shapes, texture and light become the media that capture an emotional state of mind on canvas. As forms and colors connect and become something that could be a figure or an object, they create a new pivot point for the story to unfold. I’ve been using a process where I follow the cues that emerge in the art to dictate what comes next. It sounds simple, but it’s far easier said than done.
Something I’m learning in life is that there’s such a thing as trying too hard. Sometimes the more we want things to be a certain way, the bigger the obstructions we place in the path to that destination. So I try harder in a different way. I try harder to let go… of fear, judgment and doubt. I remind myself that my art is a medium for telling a visual story. The freer I can become, the further out of that controlled comfort zone I can venture, and the truer the art becomes as a reflection of the journey in my mind.
And sometimes I regress and wonder, is this a formula for producing the type of art I want to produce? And then I remind myself, for me as an artist, the answer is not actually about removing the obstructions, but rather realizing that the destination is unknown and that’s the way it should be.
60” x 48”
Acrylic on Canvas
60” x 48”
Acrylic on canvas
48” x 48”
Acrylic on Canvas
48” x 48”
Acrylic on canvas
30” x 30”
Acrylic on Canvas
60” x 38”
Acrylic on Canvas
48” x 48”
Acrylic on Canvas
