On Monday, Christopher and I met our friends Ernie Castelo and Jeff Hammerstein (all of us representing Skyline Mediacast Productions) at the annual Pageant of the Masters media preview night, where we had the opportunity to interview featured festival artists, go behind the scenes, and get a sneak peek of this year’s array of featured masterpieces. This year’s theme, “Genius”, is so exciting… and very fitting. Thomas Edison once said,

“Genius is one percent inspiration and 99% perspiration.”

This pageant embodies this famous saying with the many talented people involved who’ve all volunteered countless hours to create this masterpiece… this genius of a festival celebrating the relationship between the arts, and advances in science and technology. Dan Duling, a pageant scriptwriter, said,

“Genius exists in every field of endeavor,and it’s a fantastic source for moving stories of triumph, tragedy and courage. If you’re looking for inspiration, this show is going to dare you to think big.”

This night is always an inspiring one for me. Not only did I get to brush shoulders with fellow members of the media, but I also got to interact with those whose vision is to celebrate art. It’s amazing, to me, to see everything come together… the backdrops and set design, the costume design, the lighting, the makeup, and the placement…. all of these things come together to recreate a larger than life display of famous artwork. SO. COOL. Here are some shots from the evening…

I think this piece of art, done by Kirsten Whalen, is TO DIE FOR…. So cute! I want to buy a print of this so bad! I think I’ll have to visit the festival of arts this summer and get me one…. 

The boys… Christopher, Ernie, and Jeff…

Me and the guys…

If you were following my Instagram feed on Monday night, you probably had your feed flooded by my pictures of these guys…. the famous “Waterloo Chess Set”. They looked just like real (giant, but real) chess pieces!! For those of you who’d like to follow my instagram feed… you can find me sharing under the name “katenoelle”.

Next stop was makeup…

Here’s a shot of the people getting placed into their paintings… such an interesting process!

Final product of Morse’s “Gallery of the Louvre”. (Interesting side note: Even though the artist was most famous for creating Morse Code, he wished so badly to be a famous artist whose work was hung in the prestigious Louvre. In fact, he wished it so badly, he painted himself and his daughter into this painting that looks as if they’re in a room of the Louvre full of his art…..)

Aaaand three famous Norman Rockwell Paintings…. “The Critic”, “The Connoisseur”, and “Picture Hanger”.

The final preview piece was called “Galileo at the Court of Isabella.”

If you’re anywhere near Laguna Beach this summer, and you’re looking for something really cool to do… I highly encourage you to check out this pageant, as well as the festival of arts. You can look up ticket prices and dates here. Maybe I’ll see you there…