California Community Bench

Students and mentors spent a full semester designing panels that become part of the California Bench. Their panel designs were based on the research and ideation of a chosen theme tied to California.

Students first researched their topic, brainstormed with the aid of their image map, and produced thumbnail panel ideas in pencil and paper. Final designs were then drawn in Adobe Illustrator. Students built a series of paper prototypes evolving their initial designs to get to final execution.

The final designs were produced in high-quality wood veneers manufactured with the aid of a CNC laser. Three Community Benches were completed. One bench resides on the main floor of the San Francisco Unified School District’s administration offices, a second at the Thurgood Marshall High School administration office in San Francisco, and a third at the San Francisco State University Library.