<< / >> / sugar maple, steel, linseed oil / 18" x 60" x 120" / washington, d.c. / 2010

this pair of benches was permanently installed in the people's garden of the united states department of agriculture on the national mall in washington, d.c. the vanrose benches celebrate the founders of the college of human ecology at cornell university. in 1925, through the stewardship of martha van rensselaer and flora rose, a school of home economics was converted to the new york state college of home economics, the first state-chartered college of home economics in the country. as co-deans for the first eight years of the college, they were often seen together and became known collectively as "vanrose". the pairing of the benches reflects this close relationship of the two cornell pioneers.