Assistant Professor Chelsea Tinklenberg and art students hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the newest sculpture on the Dell at the University of Lynchburg on Friday, Sept. 13.
“Dell’s Bench,” a bright red, metal, L-shaped sitting bench with black panels featuring the face of Dell the Hornet, hornet wings, and honeycomb pattern, was built in Spring 2024 by University of Lynchburg students enrolled in 3D Forms and Space II, a class taught by Tinklenberg.
According to Tinklenberg, this was the third time her students collaborated with Vector Space, a Lynchburg makerspace. In addition to other assignments during the class, the students chose “Dell’s Bench” as their project to work on together to provide a new and functional sculpture for visitors, students, staff, and faculty to enjoy on the Dell.
“This is just one of the most creative classes that I’ve worked with, and it was really great to see all of their ideas,” Elise Spontarelli, Vector Space executive director, said. “The spirit of collaboration is what we’re all about at Vector Space.”
“Finding out that this was a class where we worked mostly with metal got me very excited because I’ve never worked with metal before,” Marshall Rhodes ’26 said.
“It was fun to work in an environment like Vector Space. … It was just a great class and I’m glad I got to take it.”
Students who contributed to the creation of Dell’s Bench were: Braelyn Blackstone ’26, Erin Boder ’25, Draven Fernandez ’26, Abi Monteclaro ’25, Marshall Rhodes ’26, and Lydia Linkenhoker ’24.
Tinklenberg thanked President Dr. Alison Morrison-Shetlar; Chief of Staff Dr. Daniel Hall and Major Gift Officer Kerry Kinnison, who lead the Innovation Collaborative; and Director of Campus Grounds Curtis Layne for their collective support and assistance.
