So we all know that the school has spent an exorbitant amount of money donated by "Father Bloomberg" to redecorate and remodel the entire campus. I suppose the point was to make campus look more appealing to prospective freshmen (and their tuition-paying parents) and to get rid of that offensive volleyball court that used to reside in the freshman quad. So basically, after tons of noisy and annoying construction work, this campus was made absolutely stupendously ridiculously perfect by putting in tons of bricks?
Okay, maybe at first the bricks were pretty cool. But after the novelty wore off , and many of us were late for classes because we had to find different routes out of our buildings, they got old pretty quickly. Sure they were shiny and red when they were first put in, but after some rain and lots of scuffling, they became well-worn and are on their way to being a very dull, well-weathered color. Now I'm not sure that these bricks were really worth all that money and effort in the first place.
Not only did we lose our volleyball court, but also because of the placement of the bricks in the freshman quad, Spring Fair and Graduation (which used to take place there) had to be moved to Garland Field, which is less appealing. Instead of being in the middle of Homewood Campus in a familiar and comforting place, Commencement will occur in a tent on a reject field on the edge of campus.
Personally, I think this campus is beautiful, bricks aside. Especially in the spring when all the trees and flowers are in bloom, this campus is breathtaking. Standing at the top of the breezeway during spring, looking down at the lower quad, with the trees in bloom and flowers everywhere, is incredible.
My one complaint is that area under the breezeway that was supposed to be a fountain - due to some construction flaw or something, it is now simply a little circle of dirt with something green growing in it. If that fountain had been finished, it would have been pretty damn gorgeous. Instead, we have this big circle of marble with some sad looking plants inside. I guess it's better than nothing, but it's still pretty pathetic.
On those campus tours for prospective students, the tour guides must be like, "Well this was supposed to be a magnificent, awe-inspiring fountain, but well, someone messed up, so we have this nice little grassy knoll here. The mice like it."
I really wish that we had some amazing abstract art around campus, or something like that. I visited UPenn with a couple friends and saw a lot of hilarious sculptures. Their most common meeting place is where two long red, crooked tubes are situated. These are called the "dueling tampons."
And in front of their library is a giant button cracked down the middle. We were informed that it's a common spot for students to have sex. My friends and I couldn't help but wonder why we don't have anything like dueling tampons or a broken button that people have sex under at Hopkins.
It was pointed out to me that there is some abstract art on this campus. Next to Bloomberg, on the side of the path, there is a long, tall pillar that basically looks like a column, or even a lamppost because there is a light inside the top of it. Apparently, it's a piece of abstract art. I'm not sure where the aestheticism is, but make sure you look for it the next time you're at Bloomberg and feel free to make your own judgment about how artistic it is.
And the little animal sculptures on the path to Bloomberg? Please. Their only significance is to be laughed at by people who go to smoke there. They belong in a children's playground or park somewhere, not in the middle of a college campus. And although the sculptures in the sculpture garden on the side of the BMA are technically Hopkins property, they are too far away to be considered on campus. I think it would be awesome if the garden was dismantled and all those beautiful sculptures were placed around campus.
I do think this campus is beautiful, but I think it was a big mistake to put in all that brick last year. They should have taken the money to do something worthwhile, like lowering our tuition - I know, that's a crazy thought, isn't it? I guess that's too much to ask of the administration.
But I don't think I ask for very much at all. I would be quite satisfied with just a giant, broken button in front of the library.
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