With more than 40,000 visitors over two days, the La Jolla Art & Wine Festival offered something for everyone. Known for its coastline and artistic heritage, La Jolla saw its original art festival fade until local resident and San Diego State University alumna Sherry Ahern revived it in 2008. Her vision was simple: to celebrate creativity while supporting local schools.
“La Jolla has been an artist colony since the 1800s,” said Ahern, founder of the festival. “They call it the Village of La Jolla for a reason. When I saw our community and schools struggling, I knew bringing back an art festival could make a difference. Sixteen years later, it continues to support five public schools, and I believe it will last forever.”
In combination with the weekly La Jolla Farmers Market, another one of Ahern’s initiatives, the festival has become a cornerstone of community life, raising vital funds for STEM programs, teacher salaries and classroom resources.
Today, it showcases over 150 juried artists from across the U.S. and Mexico, alongside live music, gourmet food and family activities. Adults can enjoy the wine and beer garden, featuring tastings from more than 35 local wineries, breweries and distilleries with new VIP experiences introduced this year.
Beyond the wine glasses and ocean breeze, the true heartbeat of the La Jolla Art & Wine Festival lies in its artists, each one carrying a distinct story, vision and relationship to the world around us. One such artist, LaMonte Lamoureux, offers soft-edged vistas that blend memory and emotion into quiet reflections of place.
“I’m a self-taught artist with a background in pre-med, so I’ve always balanced the left and right sides of my brain,” said Lamoureux, a returning artist at the festival. “My work is inspired by the coastal atmosphere of the Southern California marine layer, the surfers, the people walking the beach. Back in the studio, I soften my values and create a color palette that captures that relaxed coastal energy. Over the past six years, I’ve produced more than 800 originals, and it’s been amazing to see this palette resonate not only with local San Diegans but also internationally, from Tokyo to Madrid.”
While Lamoureux’s work captures the coastal calm through soft tones and layered memory, fellow artist and SDSU alumna Kate Joiner brings a more sun-drenched energy to her canvases.
“I call my work California Contemporary because my color palette is deeply inspired by growing up here,” said Joiner, a fourth-year exhibitor at the festival. “Many of my pieces are based on places that hold personal memories, from coastal pools to architectural cityscapes. I love capturing the light, shadows and pastel hues that define California’s vibe. My goal is to create paintings that make people feel joyful and connected to the places we all share.”
From painted coastlines to wearable art, creativity at the La Jolla Art & Wine Festival takes many forms.
D’Via Art and Style brings a vibrant mix of original fine art, wearable pieces and upcycled designs to the festival.
The creative duo behind the brand consists of Dewanna Dallas, an SDSU alumna, and Via Gary, an interior designer and fine artist. The two first met in high school and after they had both graduated from college, Gary called her old friend with an unexpected proposal, telling Dallas “I’ve got us a spot.”
Dallas laughs remembering that moment — she didn’t know exactly what Gary meant, but she knew she was all in. Since then, the two have been inseparable partners in creativity, building their business in Chula Vista and sharing their multicultural, fair trade and one-of-a-kind art pieces with the community.
Their booth celebrates what they call “the joy of art,” a philosophy that shines through every piece they create.
Together, these artists represent the creative heart of Southern California, with each bringing their own vision, color and story to the La Jolla coast.
