Preserving an iconic artist

Painted scenes of Newport Harbor grace the walls of Gene Crain’s law

office. A similar collection of paintings is in Jim Newkirk’s

possession.

So it’s no wonder the longtime friends from Laguna Beach have

teamed up on a project that’s part art relocation, part historical

preservation.

Crain and Newkirk value works that depict local landmarks and show

waterfront scenery. It takes them back to the 1960s, when renowned

painter Rex Brandt created a four-panel mural that put his stamp on a

local building.

Brandt had grown up in San Diego and Riverside, before moving to

Corona del Mar in 1938. He married artist Joan Irving and settled

into the beach culture.

Operating out of his art studio, called Blue Sky, Brandt painted

prolifically using watercolor and oil. He used broad strokes that

created thick lines and vibrant pieces.

According to Crain, Brandt was one of the founders of the

California regionalist movement in the 1930s -- one predicated on

producing indigenous artwork.

In 1947, Brandt and fellow artist Phil Dike opened a school of

painting in Corona del Mar.

“People from all around the world would come to take lessons from

him,” Newkirk said. “Rex was a well-known teacher.”

Brandt’s primary focus was painting scenes of Newport Harbor. He

represented sailboats and surfers in ways that were recognizable to

beachgoers.

Rolly Pulaski, an architect who designed a bank on Bayside Drive

that is now a Union Bank of California branch, asked Brandt to paint

a mural inside the building in 1965.

Crain met Brandt a few years earlier through a mutual contact. And

he was present the day Brandt began painting the mural, which shows a

variety of nautical images.

The mural still hangs above customers as they approach bank

tellers. When the branch announced it was remodeling and planning to

destroy the mural, Crain and Newkirk joined forces.

“We told the people in decision-making positions that to destroy

this painting was to destroy something of monumental importance to

the coast,” Crain said.

As a result, three panels of the mural will remain in their

current position and form. Newkirk, a property investor, is

purchasing the fourth panel, which has the artist’s signature and

will be taken down in the coming days.

Newkirk said he plans to find a permanent home for the panel piece

at a local museum or public place.

“For sentimental reasons, I wanted to keep the piece,” Newkirk

said. “He was such an important guy; he made so many people happy

with his paintings.”

Brandt died in 1998 at the age of 84. His work lives on through

collectors such as Newkirk and Crain.

Newkirk continues to keep close watch over the artist’s pieces to

ensure none are destroyed.

Crain has 150 of Brandt’s works and was so moved by the artist’s

work that he named his son after the artist.

* THE GOOD OLD DAYS runs Sundays. Do you know of a person, place

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