Once Upon a Time

“Once Upon a Time” is the opening line of countless stories that inspire the imagination and transports the reader to faraway lands and adventures.  It is also the title of this bronze sculpture by Dennis Smith located on a concrete planter seat wall at the entrance to the Pleasanton Library at 400 Bernal Avenue. The artistry of this sculpture is the quiet moment expressed in the wistful gaze of a boy as he listens to a young girl reading to him.  As much a philosopher as an artist, Dennis Smith conveys the spirit of the human soul through the innocence of childhood.  It is a private moment speaking the universal truth of wondering.  

Dennis Smith is a prolific bronze artist. He was raised in Alpine, Utah, graduated from Brigham University, and attended the Royal Academy of Art in Copenhagen. In 1968 he set up a studio in his father’s old chicken coup and began to exhibit this sculpture professionally. Smith’s work is born from a traditional lost-wax method dating back to the ancient Chinese. In the final step, the sculpture is heated and treated with chemicals that oxidize the bronze changing its color to the desired effect.  For the last 40 years, Smith has been a driving force in sculpture. His work is in hundreds of public and private collections, museums, and public squares throughout the entire United States and many countries of the world.  Dennis Smith is also the artist who crafted the bronze “Girl Reading” in front of the Pleasanton Library. Both sculptures exhibit Smith’s philosophy, “Children’s lives, as they explore the world around them, parallel our lives as adults as we discover our identity in this universe.”

“Once Upon a Time” was acquired in 1999 when the Pleasanton Library opened its new building. It was privately donated to the City of Pleasanton by Don and Judy Persons and the Pleasanton Library League (now the Friends of the Pleasanton Library).  It is a sunlight invitation to discover the many stories in the library.

Jan Coleman-Knight