Caught between Ansel Adams and J.D. Wheat
In a back hallway of the William R. Pritchard Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital hangs a photo that packs a lot of history—and a great story.
Most people associate the late photographer Ansel Adams with the sweeping landscape vistas of Yosemite and the American West, but in the 1960s Adams undertook one of the most ambitious projects of his career that brought his lens into academic and clinical spaces. Commissioned by University of California President Clark Kerr, Adams and writer Nancy Newhall produced a photographic series titled Fiat Lux: The University of California, created between 1964 and 1967 to commemorate the centennial of the UC system. The series includes thousands of negatives and hundreds of fine prints depicting UC campuses, research stations, and people at work and study, including two images from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.
Alumnus and Professor Emeritus Joseph G. Zinkl is in one of the photos and recently produced his recollections of what happened the day of the shoot.
The photo, taken in May, 1966, depicts Dr. J.D. Wheat, a founding faculty member and a father of modern equine medicine, teaching four students in the hospital. A young Zinkl is in the foreground of the photo, holding a horse while absorbing the lesson.
Zinkl would go on to become a distinguished clinician, educator, and authority in veterinary pathology and clinical pathology.
But on that day in 1966, Zinkl found himself in a significant predicament. When he arrived, Wheat wasn’t there yet, but Zinkl saw that he had already chalked a stunning multicolored drawing of the front leg of a horse. “It seemed obvious,” Zinkl said, “that Dr. Wheat had spent consider time and great effort to create an elaborate depiction of his special area of expertise.”
Adams was the second to arrive and he immediately assessed the space, zeroing in on the drawing. He ordered Zinkl to erase it.
“Despite my trepidation,” Zinkl said, “I erased the drawing.”
Several minutes later Wheat entered the room with three more of Zinkl’s classmates: Dave Martin, Jim DeMartini and Stephan Carmet. Soon, Wheat noticed the cleared chalkboard.
“Who erased my diagram,” Wheat asked.
Zinkl was caught between two titans of medicine and photography. He paused, hoping that Adams would say something. He did not, and Zinkl fessed up. But he quickly followed up with “He told me to,” indicating Adams.
“Mr. Adams,” Zinkl said, “had thrown me under the bus. I quickly dragged him under there with me.”
Nothing came of it and Adams worked his magic, capturing a rare visual glimpse of the school during a fledging era. The school does not have a strong photographic record of its early years, making the Adams photo that much more valuable.
Read Zinkl’s full account of the day of the photo
A Community Mystery: Help Identify Another Adams Photograph
Along the same hallway is another intriguing Ansel Adams print from the Fiat Lux series: a photograph of a woman holding a dog, set in what appears to be a clinical or animal care environment. The photo, also taken in 1966, was printed for the school’s 75th anniversary in 2023, and so far no one has been able to identify the woman.
UPDATE 1/16/26 - The woman in the photo has been identified as Mrs. Doris Harrold, thanks to Sharon Spier. According to Spier, "Dory" worked at UC Davis in the clinical pathology laboratories and as an invaluable research assistant until she retired at age 70. She is a coauthor on numerous publications from the Dept of Medicine and Epidemiology. She was very talented, intelligent, highly versatile and a joy to work with.