Design and Build Workshop

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“Why Design Benches?”

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Yvonne Shortts wanted benches to be the first installation in the Elmhurst Sculpture Garden. Adding benches to the garden created an open invitation for people. The Benches were the first steps of having people acknowledge the garden and make them aware that it was no longer an unwelcoming overgrown lot. Each bench was painted with inspiring messages: Bench 1. “Life can be” Bench 2. “An Adventure” Bench 3. “It’s up to” Bench 4. “You”

These benches were built by five young women, whom all learned hands on and how to work with tools. These benches were part of Phase 1 of the sculptures in the Elmhurst Sculpture Garden.