Capturing the cove

Mathis Winkler

In a way, Beatrice Anderson sees herself as a reporter. But instead of

working with pen and paper or a camera, the Corona del Mar resident

captures her stories in paintings.

And starting today, her work can be seen at Newport Beach’s central

library, where Anderson has put together an exhibition entitled “Once

Upon a Time, Crystal Cove.”

The fairy tale reference is intentional, Anderson said Monday. In

1985, when she first began painting the beach colony, which is made up of

cottages built in the 1920s and 1930s, the quietness and quaintness of

the place made her feel like she’d stepped back in time.

The exhibition is “my perception of a little enclave out of this world

in Southern California that I fell in love with,” she said.

Anderson, who left a career in the computer industry to make a living

as an artist, said Crystal Cove’s scenery is perfect for watercolor

paintings, her medium of choice.

“I love the glow,” she said. “You can always see all the layers of

paint.”

Unlike oil paint, the transparency of water colors forces her to work

precisely, Anderson said.

“The white of the paper is your white,” she said. “You really have to

know where you leave it white.”

Over time, Anderson has grown close to some of the people living in

the cottages and has stayed in Crystal Cove several times overnight.

“The only way to get a feeling really [is] to stay there and not just

visit there,” she said. In the beginning, “you cannot sleep for a couple

of days. The ocean is so noisy in the morning. You see the pelicans going

to San Diego in the morning and in the evening back to L.A.”

She’s adamant about not taking sides in the dispute over what’s to

happen to the state-owned cottages. While plans for a $35-million luxury

resort were recently dropped and the restoration of the cabins is the

only sure thing at the moment, Crystal Cove’s residents are scheduled to

leave their homes by July 8.

But the native Parisian said she worried about the cottage’s future

nevertheless.

“Coming from Europe, I have a little bit of a sense of history,” she

said, adding that she mourned the demolition of a Chinese-style house in

Corona del Mar to make room for apartments a few years ago.

Although she doesn’t paint human portraits and has found a niche in

the art market by portraying homes, she tries to capture the flair people

lend to their residences.

“When I paint people’s homes, I try to know them a little bit,” she

said. “Whether it’s a cottage in Crystal Cove or an estate somewhere in

Europe, it’s interesting to see a little bit who lives there.”

No matter what happens down the coast, Anderson hopes to spend many

more mornings and late afternoons reporting on nature and cottages at

Crystal Cove.

“Sometimes, I just go there to sketch or walk and feel the place,” she

said. “To see if there is something else that I haven’t seen before.

There’s so much to do. This is just the beginning.”

FYI

“Once Upon a Time, Crystal Cove” opens today at the Newport Beach

Central Library, 1000 Avocado Avenue. A reception that’s open to the

public will be held on Sunday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. The exhibition runs

through May 2. Information: (949) 759-0550