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| 9/25/26 Stanford University campus Quad, where the gorgeous landscaping complements the equally beautiful architecture. |
Years ago, I was dazzled by my first walk around Stanford
University campus. With family then (one of my brothers and his daughter both
graduated from the Palo Alto institution, so they were familiar with it), I
didn’t have time to sketch. Recalling the beautiful campus, I made a day trip
to Palo Alto alone so that I could see it properly – with my sketchbook.
Although I didn’t tackle sketching more than glimpses of Stanford’s
stately architecture – I strategically chose compositions in which trees and
foliage obstructed the most intimidating architectural parts – I certainly
enjoyed seeing it. Visiting during student orientation week turned out to be
especially informative: Wherever I stopped to sketch, I could eavesdrop on multiple
tour leaders.
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| Noted at top right is the oak titmouse that the Merlin app ID'd when I heard an unfamiliar bird call. |
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| I liked the top of Hoover Tower so much that I sketched it three times! |
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| The non-denominational Stanford Memorial Church was built by Leland Stanford's wife Jane after his death. Couples can get married there. (I learned this by eavesdropping on tour guides.) |
A highlight of my Stanford visit was following a tip I had learned
from Nina the previous day (and it’s a good thing I took notes, because
I never would have found it otherwise). In the late afternoon when the day was
getting warm, I visited the Papua New Guinea Sculpture Park, which is tucked
away among a small, delightfully shady forest. After seeing and sketching the symmetrical,
classical architecture of the academic buildings most of the day, I found the organic
stone sculptures of animals and figures to be an intriguing contrast.
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| At left is a black squirrel, many of which I saw in northern California but have never seen in Seattle. The tree with unusual bark turned out to be a cork oak, which grew plentifully around Stanford. |
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| Papua New Guinea sculptures |
Stanford campus is a sketcher’s paradise, and the cool,
shady Papua New Guinea Sculpture Park is an oasis.
Lovely sketches of what is obviously a beautiful place. What strikes me when I look back and forth between the photographs and the sketches is that the 'still' photographs are (appropriately) static, while the sketches are alive. The photographs could be illustrations from a book showing what the Stanford campus looks like. The sketches show me what it is like to be there.
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking us along.
Thank you, David, for that great description of the difference between photos and sketches! I, too, have often observed (or felt) that same difference when I see sketches and photos that others have made of the same place, but I haven't been able to articulate the difference.
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