Amidst the bustle of daily activities at Harvard, still lives of stone, bronze, iron, and glass surround us. Artistic and architectural details on campus boast a dizzying array of fine craftsmanship — both ornamental and functional — ranging across centuries. With the quiet calm of the attentive photographer, teacups, tomes, and the steadfast hands of a tuxedoed artist come into focus.
“H” is for handsome. In the right light, this embossed Harvard shield glistens inside Robinson Hall. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer These moss-edged swirls are actually curls of a lion’s mane. The stone statue sits in front of Yenching Library. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Ebony and ivory. These keys wait untouched, reflected in a glossy encasement that protects the piano inside the Music Building. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer These elegant maidens bustle with life in the quiet sanction of the Harvard Faculty Club’s reading room. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer This lone tree is psychedelically distorted in a glass wall of the Carpenter Center. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer With rainbow colors, this painting inside the Sackler Museum looks more like confetti than leaves. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer This gold-plated volume inside Houghton Library glows with wonder, as if holding the secrets of the world. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A network of strings intersects in a River House piano. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Stony beasts bend over the entrance to Austin Hall at Harvard Law School. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A head above. Here, John Harvard gazes over the Thompson Room fireplace in the Barker Center. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Like a Rothko painting, these gradations of color on columns outside Austin Hall meld with a simple yet unearthly beauty. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer What seems like rich bronze is actually wood: These distinctive embellishments blaze inside Widener Library. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The signature of e.e. cummings punctuates a page in Houghton Library. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The Emily Dickinson Room in Houghton Library is home to a graceful tea set owned by the reclusive poetess. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The stairs at Andover Hall at Harvard Divinity School light the way toward a righteous education. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The death mask of John Keats rests above the mantel in the Keats Room of Houghton Library. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The plaintive hands of Helen Keller hover above these painted pages in the Barker Center’s Thompson Room. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer This Memorial Church window reveals a wintry entanglement of trees in Harvard Yard. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The pulpit stairs of Memorial Church spiral skyward. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer An ornamented music stand awaits a concerto in a River House rehearsal room. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Focus converges on a piano hinge in the Music Building. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A well-worn volume inside Houghton Library could be mistaken for ancient stone. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Inside Houghton Library, chandeliers reflect off a glass case housing elegantly bound 15th century volumes. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The hands of Max Beckmann are immortalized in his “Self-Portrait in Tuxedo” on display in the Sackler Museum. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The transept of Memorial Hall boasts elegant stained glass windows. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A marbleized cover decorates a volume inside the stacks of Widener Library. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Refined ladies convene on the walls of the Sackler Museum. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A haunting and stately carved face collects majestic light inside the Semitic Museum. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The rising curves of the Henry Moore sculpture “Large Four Piece Reclining Figure” are on display outside of Lamont Library. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Repeating circles form a patterned grate inside the Ames Courtroom of Austin Hall. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer This imposing face overlooks the entrance of Robinson Hall. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A grandfather clock in the Barker Center’s Thompson Room exhibits the Veritas shield. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer This angelic marble figure keeps watch in Widener Library. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A volume intricately decorated in crimson and gold is on display in Houghton Library. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer These flower patterns line the exterior walls of Robinson Hall. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Garlanded ornaments decorate Memorial Hall. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A grandfather clock measures time for Dudley House inhabitants. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A pensive maiden illustrates the face of a grandfather clock in a Dudley House reading room. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer A cherubic figure adorns a grandfather clock in the Thompson Room of the Barker Center. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer The impressive mantel inside the Keats Room of Houghton Library is reflected in the bookcase. Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer
Sylvia Mathews Burwell ’87, former president of American University and former secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has been elected president of the Harvard University Board…
Physician and acclaimed novelist underlines immigrants’ contributions to Harvard and the nation, urges graduates to show courage, character in the face of hardship