Perspective can be everything.
It’s certainly part of the humanities, Giselle Anatol said. Anatol, director of the Hall Center for the Humanities at the University of Kansas, was present at a packed ceremony Friday evening to accept a custom bench that the hall commissioned in celebration of its 50th anniversary.
She said she hopes the vibrant artwork, created by Olly Glynn, will draw more people inside.
“That metaphor of perspective was captured in this view of the earth, the view of the arches, this fire of inspiration, the brains, and people coming together for collaborative thinking through ideas of collaborative learning, collaborative research, and sharing that research,” Anatol said. “I think Olly captured it all really well.”
Glynn is one of 20 young artists who each designed, constructed and painted a unique bench as part of Van Go’s Benchmark program this summer.
Van Go is an arts-based social service and employment agency for Douglas County youth. Every summer, apprentice artists ages 14-18 are paired with a client — whether it be a business, individual or organization. Then at the end of the eight-week process, each artist and client anticipate a drumroll before whipping a tarp off the piece.
Art apprentice ShyAirah Horn’s client was the Douglas County Clerk’s Office. Yellow sunflowers and a gradient blue background among other details on her bench represented the state of Kansas.
Participating in Benchmark allowed Horn to reunite old connections while sparking new ones, she said.
“What’s really important about Van Go was that they really put you out of your comfort zone, like, being around new people that I’ve never even known existed and I live in the same town as them,” Horn said. “And there’s a whole bunch of people here that I haven’t seen in so long that I work with now, and it’s just beautiful.”
Creating her bench for Lava Yoga, art apprentice Shasta Kiekel combined humanity and nature to show how the two coexist. Her designs depicted fluidity.
“I also wanted to be somewhat gender neutral, because a big part of Lava Yoga is that everyone’s accepted,” Kiekel said. “I wanted to show the nature of walking into Lava Yoga. They have huge, giant palm trees and just beautiful plants, and I really want to show that because I’m a big lover of plants.”
From beginning sketches to the finished product, the bench-making process wasn’t without stress, Kiekel said. But like Horn, she was grateful to take new friendships away from the experience and hone in on her art skills.
“I’ve never tackled a project this big, and it definitely taught me a few lessons,” Kiekel said.
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Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
Nathan Kramer (he/him), a multimedia student journalist for The Lawrence Times since August 2024, is a senior at Free State High School. He is also a news photo editor for Free State’s student publication, where he works as a videographer, photographer and motion designer. See more of his work for the Times here.
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