Will Bowen | Downtown News

One of the nicest things about Coronado is its library – a huge mansion-like building in a park setting with an excellent collection of books, music, and art, including some stellar murals by the renowned Mexican artist, Alfredo Ramos Martinez.

Add to that some very fine furnishings, with some beautiful, richly stained wooden tables and chairs that you might find in a luxury setting, due in no small part to the artistic sensibilities of head librarian Christian Esquevin, who himself looks like he might have just stepped out of a Rembrandt painting.

Esquevin’s goal is to emulate the grand old libraries of the East Coast that existed in circa 1900, and to expose his patrons, many of whom do not go to art museums, to the world of art.

In addition to the two murals by Martinez, Esquevin also has an oil painting of Coronado’s Tent City by Sue McNary and a sculpture by Donald Hord on permanent display.

In addition, running through May 31, the library has also installed an interesting exhibition, showcasing the artwork of Coronado High School (CHS) art teacher Esther Painter Hagstrom, who taught at the school from 1939-1951, along with artwork from nine of her notable students who continued on as artists.

This exhibition is a great opportunity to ponder what is timeless about art and what is a product of a certain historical moment – in this case, the war years in Coronado – because all the art on exhibition is from that period.

The show, featuring watercolor and oil paintings of various landscapes, boats, and buildings, was curated by Painter Hagstrom’s granddaughter, Suzy Hagstrom, and assisted by Mike Mead, a young contemporary artist who recently moved to San Diego. Hagstrom, a former journalist, recently donated all of her grandmother’s artwork to the library.

On April 6, 2013, the library held a reception for the nine former students whose works are in the show – many of whom had not seen each other in over 50 years.

They reminisced about the Coronado they grew up in and the art scene of the time and compared it to the Coronado of today and the world of contemporary art.

Jack Minchin, who graduated from CHS in 1948, is one of the artists on display.

“When I was going to CHS in the 1940s, just before and during the war, the town was like an armed camp – there were Marines living in tents on the beach.” Minchin said. “Every day they bussed in students from the Navy families living on North Island Naval Base. When I went on a date I often had to go out onto the base to pick the girl up.”

Sarah Mott Durand, also a 1948 CHS graduate, took a 26-hour train ride from Oregon to attend the artist reception.

“You don’t know how delightful life was in Coronado in those days,” Mott Durand reflected. “We would roller skate all day long. … We used to collect scrap metal for the war effort by going up and down alleys.

“Back in those days, art was fun,” she said. “It was less free than it is today and there was less variety; but you know, then or now, art is still the most important thing in our lives.

“If you look back at ancient civilizations, it’s their art that we remember,” Mott Durand continued. “So the new idea that we should cut art from our school curriculums to save money is just plain ridiculous.”

Artist Hildegarde Jaeger Stubbs remembers that Coronado was very quiet in the 1940s, except for the Fourth of July parades, which she vividly remembers.

“My father knew a ferry boat captain and we would go up to the wheel house and ride the ferry back and forth to San Diego,” said Jaeger Stubbs, adding she felt safe in Coronado back then and her parents gave her the freedom to explore the area. “Imagine letting a little girl go where ever she wanted. You can’t do that any more.”

She said there is no need to get a formal art school education to be a good artist.  “Just paint, paint, and paint, and take lessons from with people who are good. That is all that is really required,” she said.

“[Coronado] was nirvana back then,” reflected Lois Drake Ferguson, another former CHS student. “I remember digging for sand crabs and ghost shrimp under the bridge that used to connect Coronado with North Island, across what was known as the “Spanish Byte” – an inlet that almost cut Coronado in two.” She said eventually the bay was dredged, the Byte was filled, and soon a golf course and officer housing were built in their place.

“Since there was no TV, I ended up reading every book in the library. … In my opinion, the art of today is about the same as it was then. Anyway, it all comes from the same pot of creativity,” said Drake Ferguson

While the art of Painter Hagstrom’s nine former CHS students will eventually go home, hers will remain in the library’s collection and be rotated in for viewing on a permanent basis.

For further information about the exhibition, call Coronado Library Head Librarian Esquevin at 619-522-7395 or curator Suzy Hagstrom at 619-758-0532 or see the website estherpainterhagstom.vpweb.com.