A student recently turned this up in one of Julian Huxley’s scrapbooks and brought it to attention:
I’d seen the image before but had apparently never bothered to turn it over. I did this time and found a note in Edgar Odell Lovett’s handwriting:
I couldn’t help but walk over to Lovett Hall and have another look at those carvings, which could only be done by crouching down and peering around the construction fence. There’s a lot of change happening on campus these days, mostly good, but sometimes continuity matters too.
Bonus:
Melissa, thanks for turning over the print. Love that you recognize E.O. Lovett handwriting. Notice how the mortar joints between the blocks of stone are mimicked by the fold in the print from Huxley’s Scrapbook. I never really thought about those carvings being done in place. I appreciate your sneak preview of the new landscaping in the quad. Best photo of all is the Bonus: Thank goodness for photographers who include the workers (as you did) who make the remarkable process come to life. Thanks for keeping us visually aware and in praise of continuity.
Melissa, this is a lovely post, and I very much appreciate and second Paul’s comments. The bonus photo is a welcome tribute to the workers who truly did and do the heavy lifting to create beautiful spaces in our lives.