They storm across campus in matching hats and T-shirts, zipping around in a flashy orange vehicle, ready to answer the distressed calls of grimy and cobwebbed statues in need of a valiant savior. One is armed with blue rubber gloves and an arsenal of hoses, brushes and liquid solvents. No, it’s not a new Justice League of superheroes — it’s Stanford’s very own Sculpture Crew.

The Outdoor Sculpture Maintenance Crew was established in 1993 to survey the sculpture conditions of the University’s vast collection. Today, Cantor Arts Center hires a diverse group of students to clean and maintain the various pieces spread across campus. Teams of two or three students work year-round, keeping the permanent artwork presentable for students and visitors alike.

Susan Roberts-Manganelli, manager of collections, exhibitions and conservation at Cantor, said that the Sculpture Crew offers a great opportunity for students interested in art careers.

“The sculpture crew gets people from all sorts of departments,” Roberts-Manganelli said, explaining that rather than hiring employees from outside the University, the Sculpture Crew was created to give students interested in art a chance to get hands-on experience, literally.

“For art students, it’s a great way to further their education by seeing how much maintenance is required for certain kinds of sculptures,” she said. “But also we know that Stanford students are the ones who will purchase art, donate art and become the patrons of the arts in the future.”

Although art majors are the typical job applicants, students from other majors have also been drawn by the prospect of working outdoors in beautiful weather.

“It’s a nice way to take a break from studying,” said sculpture maintenance technician Thomas Nguyen ‘01. An English major, Nguyen first learned about the Sculpture Crew from a friend in the art department.

“It’s great if you like hauling hoses, getting wet and being in the sun when the weather is so great,” Nguyen said. “Plus, it’s a good job to have because it’s really self-directed.”

While the typical maintenance jobs require only a simple wash, objects conservator and professional sculpture cleaner Tracy Power works with a handful of students on larger projects involving re-waxing and repainting.

“With this job, you get to see many different parts of campus,” Power said. “You get to work in lifts and harnesses, you get to touch and climb on the statues in the museum and you’re invited to museum openings. It’s particularly valuable for people making sculptures to see the amount of maintenance required, and when you work with the outdoor pieces, it helps artists understand the logistics of sculpting.”

Power and Nguyen are on duty together today. Standing in the middle of Aristides Demetrios’ drained White Memorial Fountain (better known as The Claw), amidst heavy construction near the Stanford Bookstore, they carefully inspect the condition of the bronze and copper structure for signs of damage.

“Fountains like this one usually need less work,” Power explained, taking multiple photographs of the fountain to document its condition. “Even if we removed the patina from this bronze sculpture, it’ll be back once the water is turned back on.”

With the teamwork of an indomitable hero-sidekick team like Batman and Robin, Power and Nguyen discuss the possible cause for certain unusual color splotches.

“These purple areas you don’t see naturally with bronze — they might be caused by some kind of chemical in the water,” Power said. “And these red splotches are probably from paint.”

To identify the proper treatment, Nguyen and Power brought along a cooler filled with bottles of liquid solvents such as acetone and DTPA. Using cotton swabs, they experimented with various solvents to see which chemicals effectively remove the unnaturally colored areas and perhaps prescribe the appropriate treatment for the sculpture.

Nguyen, who first joined the crew with only limited knowledge of sculptures, has nevertheless learned a great deal through his experience with Sculpture Crew.

“It’s mainly art majors who are on the crew, but even so, you learn a lot about the art over time,” he said. “Now, if I go around to different cities, I’ll see a sculpture and think, ‘Oh, it’s a Moore.’ I’ve learned to appreciate the sculptures more, and now sometimes I’ll get annoyed when I see them dirty or vandalized.”

While the crew usually takes care of normal wear and tear, on occasion there is an unfortunate case of vandalism that requires particular attention. According to Power, the biggest problem with vandalism is with the Alexander Calder sculpture, “The Falcon.” This sculpture, located near the Law School, has traditionally been a part of Frisbee golf courses.

“People ride their skateboards and bikes on the Calder, and the spokes end up tearing the paint,” Power added. “It’s really heartbreaking to see what happens to it.”

Interest in joining Sculpture Crew has been down recently, according to Roberts-Manganelli, but she hopes that, come September, she can draw an enthusiastic batch of super-cleaners — ready to save the day, battle dirt and grime and be defenders of cleanliness and art.