Did You Know? Motion Picture Edition

As you enter Stanford Court's vibrant lobby, one of the first things you'll notice is a large mural of a horse trotting around the space. The piece is based on photographer Eadweard Muybridge's "Sallie Gardner at a Gallop", an innovative photo series that became the basis for future motion pictures. The photography series was commissioned by Leland Stanford in 1878 to win a bet. Stanford loved horses and it was his opinion, though unproven at the time, that there was a point during a horse's trot that all four hooves were off the ground. Stanford commissioned Muybridge to take a series of photographs - 24 in all - in rapid succession which would not just prove his hypothesis correct (and more importantly, to win the bet) but which helped lay the groundwork for the motion picture industry. You can see the piece in animation via the Museum of the City of San Francisco here. Better yet, visit us and see each image side-by-side and explore all of our incredible public art.