Shearwater Cottage Murals

They give drink to every beast of the field: the wild asses quench their thirst.”[4][3] The mural frames a window which allows the sun’s last rays to shine in and warm the cottage room.

Again Psalm 104:20 is seen on this wall— “Thou makest darkness, and it is night: wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth.” [4] [3] The north wall differs dramatically from the other three.

On the white plaster of the chimney, Anderson introduced a human element, in mythical female form, to the world of nature.

The mythic fireplace figure shares this crown of tributaries and its identification with the Mississippi River confirms the orientation of the entire room.

[2] Anderson’s inclusion of this human form alludes to Psalm 104 in the sense that God accommodates man along with the other creatures.

Psalm 104:14-15 states “ He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man…And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart.”[4][3] The ceiling: zinnia On the ceiling, Anderson painted a monumental zinnia.

Their orientation and interior setting remain the same and native plantings outside the museum will someday emulate the views from the cottage windows.

[2] The murals should be approached as an element of their setting, the Mississippi Gulf Coast, which is also their subject, and as the intensely private expression of an artist who did not allow them to be seen while he was alive and was ambivalent about their preservation.