Old and new lights

THE OLD

...make me an offer if your bordello needs a new fixture...

THE NEW

(well, not really new, but re-purposed)

...more light, closer to ceiling, more attractive = win-win-win...

Wordless Wednesday: freeze and thaw

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Inside & out at Rice

amazing light fixture in Baker Hall

neat tree reflections in the windows of one of the numerous new science buildings
(perhaps Brockman Hall?)

Backdated Wordless Wednesday: I see the light!

Art [at the] Institute*

I don't think I'm just speaking as a proud alum when I assert that the campus of Rice University (*née Institute) showcases some architectural marvels. We're reminded of the loveliness of its buildings, old and new, every time we visit. And last weekend's gorgeous weather certainly helped (perhaps the one fine weather weekend per year that Houston's allotted?).

The architectural tradition began with the very first building on campus, Lovett Hall, the main administration building now. It's the one whose majestic Sallyport opens on to the main quad that you can see above.

Here's another view of the quad, this photo taken from the sixth floor of the Library. (Most of the tall buildings in the background aren't on campus.)

Pretty nice view, eh? The formal hedges were taller in my day, but they still give the area the classical beauty of a European garden. That being the original idea, to go with the Mediterranean-style architecture. The statue in the center of the quad is that of the University's founder, William Marsh Rice. (His story is much more exciting than that of most university founders, I'd be willing to bet. Take a minute and read the last paragraph of the linked article for a quick summary of the important facts.)

The buildings on either side of Lovett Hall fit in with its style perfectly, even though they were built several decades apart. On the left above is the old Physics Building, almost as old as Lovett. While on the right is Sewall Hall, which was just being built my senior year. This end of the quad is particularly noteworthy for its buildings' beautiful arcades. I couldn't help taking lots of pictures looking down them. Here's one of my favorites, the Physics Building's arcade:

The Library building itself, which you can see through the Sallyport in the picture at the top of the post, is the exception that proves the rule. Built in the late 1940's, it's a pretty ugly structure on the outside. Inside, however, it's a much more attractive space, as well as functioning nicely as a library.

Its non-functional aspects include some quirky and some quite lovely art. For an example of the first type, check out the sculpture made with real books "growing" up the wall in the photo on the left.

Just inside the front door, they make the most of building's soaring ceilings with the lovely sculpture you see below. I took the photo during an "art tour" of the campus that we got up early for last Saturday morning. It was really interesting and gave us an even greater appreciation of the great campus. Our guide assured us that the glass "boats" in the Library's sculpture were of identical sizes. It doesn't look like it, though, does it?

Another stop on the art tour was the Engineering Quad, particularly in front of the Mechanical Lab, one of the oldest buildings on campus. The tall tower is the Campanile (another word, like "Sallyport," that I didn't realize had a broader meaning until after my Rice history of art course!) that gives the school's yearbook its name. But the really cool art in the quad is "45-90-180," three huge blocks of granite positioned at those angles. My photo just shows the 90° one but you can see a panoramic shot of all three here. Although our tour guide wouldn't admit it, these blocks just have to invite midnight clambering by adventurous students.

A smaller, but also 90° structure, is on the other side of campus, outside of Baker Hall (where we attended the Jefferson lecture I mentioned in my last post). It technically isn't a work of art but it's certainly of significance....

...being a fragment of the Berlin wall (that's Henry examining it). A very apt piece of "statuary" since the building next to it is home to the rather famous Baker Institute for Public Policy. (An ancestor of the Baker the Institute is named for—whose politics I might disagree with but who has really put Rice on the map with this organization—was instrumental in getting Willie's (William Marsh Rice's) money for the school as the old boy intended. You can read more of the lurid details here.)

We ended up our art tour in an actual art gallery. It's in Sewall Hall on the main quad and always sports interesting exhibits. The current one is a delightful recreation of a Los Angeles neighborhood. You can read more about it here. This is one of the many photos I took of its quirky, colorful "buildings."

I'll close with a view of the newest sculpture on campus, the sleek, stylistic owl inhabiting a new little garden between the Library and the Chapel. (There's another picture of the owl, with me in it, in my last post.) I was pleased this photo came out so well, highlighting the clever and attractive details of the Chapel's architecture, a good example of the lovely old trees that give so much more shade now than they did 40 years ago, and, of course, the smooth bronze of this newest incarnation of Sammy the Owl.

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I have a lot more pictures that show off various interesting/beautiful/sentimental aspects of the campus. Since I'll be on the road again over Thanksgiving week (it's our first time to be in Colorado in the month of November—we're hoping for enough snow to do some skiing around working on our house up there) I won't have time to do much full-fledged blogging for a while. But I'll pick out some favorite pictures and do a Wordless Wednesday (and possibly some other days, too) post or two when I get a chance.

À la recherche du temps perdu, y'all

Last weekend we attended a college reunion, the number of which I find astonishingly large. How has that much time passed so quickly?!

Old buddies, and even an old favorite professor [we were all somewhat flabbergasted to realize how close to us in age many of these revered figures are], made the visit worthwhile. Plus we spent enough time on the campus that its current incarnation, considerably different from its appearance when we were there, now seems a bit more familiar and less disorienting to us. 

Graduating in 1971 and 1972.5, we left Rice just as it was beginning a phase of amazing expansion and building frenzy. Not to mention the city as a whole, which has also grown and prospered hugely in the years since our graduations. The medical center in particular, whose buildings now somewhat overshadow that side of campus. In our day, only by walking along the southern edge of Rice could you see the buildings beyond. Now architecturally interesting—and gigantic—structures like the Methodist hospital ship on the right, are visible from anywhere.

So the rather sleepy and spacious campus environment that we remember is no more. But the campus that's home to the new generation is in many ways both more lovely and more stimulating. In my next post I'll show you some of the great art and architecture we noticed on our various walks around the area.

But back to homecoming activities. We spent an extra day in Houston this time, in order to take advantage of what continues to make Rice a wonderful place, no matter what the buildings look like. I'm referring to the great faculty and the atmosphere of intellectual challenge that permeates the place. We took in some of the homecoming lectures and enjoyed them thoroughly. From getting a new perspective on the intellectual life of Thomas Jefferson, to learning about how bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics, we almost felt like undergraduates again—with the added benefit of not having to take any tests!

There was also a class of 1971 dinner that was most enjoyable, a general alumni barbque, and, of course, a football game. The game was actually pretty exciting (we even won) but the highlight of Rice football games is always the MOB (Marching Owl Band, the first word of which is rather misleading since they don't do any actual marching).

How many marching bands feature a strings section?

As irreverent as their style is, they still perform the required functions, such as playing the fight song at appropriate moments, the alma mater after the game, and the national anthem before it. Below is a picture during the latter activity, with the flag actually being made to wave when the words refer to that motion:

We finished up the homecoming activities with a look in at a volleyball game. The gym has been refurbished and expanded, of course, since our days on campus, and we wanted to see the changes. Plus that game was also fun and had a good result, a Rice win. (I took the picture at the top of the post in the newly spiffy gym.)

Next up, I'll treat you to some photos of nifty scenes around campus. Including the newest piece of sculpture, the stylistic owl you see below. A friend took this picture after giving me a tour of the—naturally—renovated and expanded library.

But the curving wall behind me in the photo is the outside of the Rice Chapel, which some readers might remember is where Henry and I got married (also a very long time ago). And as I mentioned in the earlier blog post, it is among the few spaces on campus that looks just like it did then. Rather comforting amid all the other ch-ch-changes.

Wordless Wednesday: PLEASE don't tell me it's Christmas already

A hint of fall

Yes, we had our first overnight dip into the 40's this week. But what I'm referring to is the smidgen of color we saw in the trees along the river, while paddling Saturday. 

The rainstorm we had a few weeks ago meant that the Upper Guadalupe is just barely navigable again, and it was my favorite stretch that was selected by our Dear Non-Leader for the outing.

I do mean just barely navigable, and we had lots of scrambling, getting in and out of the boats, pulling the boats, walking the boats, etc. So much effort that I probably won't go again until/unless we get some more rain. But golly! What a beautiful day! In spite of the sore muscles and utter exhaustion, I'm very glad I paddled.

Particularly wonderful, as often happens, were the trees. The beautiful giants just starting to blush for fall in most of my pictures are bald cypress, and they are a wonder to behold along the Guadalupe.

Enormously tall, with smooth gray trunks and, often, roots like modern sculptures (you can see several root pictures in this earlier paddling post), their branches make a fabulous canopy to float under.

The cool fall weather, while not deterring those of us with [closets-full of] the proper gear, does mean there are few other humans on the river. Which makes it easier to see birds. Like this perching vulture, sitting in some other kind of tree than a cypress, and one that might end up someday providing a navigational challenge should it topple into the river. 

I even saw some V's of geese heading south. Unfortunately, too quickly for my camera. Which is another reason I like trees. They just stand there and let you take their pictures, no special skill or fast shutter required.