Rochester Quarry Hill Nature Center
Artist In Residence
Cassandra Buck will be working with and Rochester's Cascade Lake Park and Quarry Hill Nature Center as well as Rochester's Cascade Lake Park and Olmsted County's Oxbow Park & Zollman Zoo. In March of 2025, she held 6 work workshops for the community. She worked with local art shops, Griot Arts and Rochester Art Center, to provide free art kits for local residents for those residents who would like to participate, but can not attend one of the workshops.
Cassandra Buck will be working with and Rochester's Cascade Lake Park and Quarry Hill Nature Center as well as Rochester's Cascade Lake Park and Olmsted County's Oxbow Park & Zollman Zoo. In March of 2025, she held 6 work workshops for the community. She worked with local art shops, Griot Arts and Rochester Art Center, to provide free art kits for local residents for those residents who would like to participate, but can not attend one of the workshops.
The goal of the workshops is to bring together people of all ages to create their own art. Cassandra guided community members to create their own artwork using paints, colored pencils, yarn, paper, canvas, photos and printmaking materials at the workshops. For those people who wished to be included, but could not attend the workshops, Cassandra created the art kits that included a QR code to a video to walk people through their art creation. It also included instructions regarding how to submit their art as well as responses to questions that Cassandra asked people.
These questions included how the people feel connected to nature and to the park as well as what the park means to them. Cassandra used the responses to the questions submitted with the artwork and the information she was given when talking with the people during the workshops to decide what kind of art projects should be created for the park.
At Quarry Hill Nature Center, many people talked with Cassandra regarding how they enjoyed making memories at the park. They also added text to their artwork which fit into the making memories refrain that rolled through the conversations.
These questions included how the people feel connected to nature and to the park as well as what the park means to them. Cassandra used the responses to the questions submitted with the artwork and the information she was given when talking with the people during the workshops to decide what kind of art projects should be created for the park.
At Quarry Hill Nature Center, many people talked with Cassandra regarding how they enjoyed making memories at the park. They also added text to their artwork which fit into the making memories refrain that rolled through the conversations.
Mixed Media Art
If you look at her website, Cassandra seems to have a specialty in mixed media art. She showcases this specialty in the main art piece for the Quarry Hill Nature Center. On the side of a building and enclosed in chain-link fencing, the main artwork piece for the park resides. The piece has 2 separate painted pieces surrounded by large cross-stitched items from nature along the chain-link and nearby wooden fence. One of the paintings resembles water and the other brings to mind Monarch butterflies. Both paintings include text that was either on the art that was submitted or created during the art workshops.
The title of the whole of the artwork is Memories of Nature.
If you look at her website, Cassandra seems to have a specialty in mixed media art. She showcases this specialty in the main art piece for the Quarry Hill Nature Center. On the side of a building and enclosed in chain-link fencing, the main artwork piece for the park resides. The piece has 2 separate painted pieces surrounded by large cross-stitched items from nature along the chain-link and nearby wooden fence. One of the paintings resembles water and the other brings to mind Monarch butterflies. Both paintings include text that was either on the art that was submitted or created during the art workshops.
The title of the whole of the artwork is Memories of Nature.
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Mural
The theme for the art pieces at Quarry Hill Nature Center centered around making memories. This was achieved not only in the actual pieces of artwork created, but by including the community in the painting of the murals. The community made memories of how they helped paint the murals and now have a personal connection to the park and the artwork.
The community created a mural on the front of a wall that is used to close off an cave.
The theme for the art pieces at Quarry Hill Nature Center centered around making memories. This was achieved not only in the actual pieces of artwork created, but by including the community in the painting of the murals. The community made memories of how they helped paint the murals and now have a personal connection to the park and the artwork.
The community created a mural on the front of a wall that is used to close off an cave.
Cassandra Buck graduated with a bachelor’s degree in art education from Winona State University in 2008. She taught middle school art for seven years and is currently working as a full-time artist. She is a leader within the local art community and is an advocate for women in the arts. Cassandra is the Arts Programmer/Gallery Curator at Forager Brewery in Rochester, Minnesota.
Cassandra has exhibited as a solo artist as well as various group exhibitions including Winona State University, The University of Minnesota, and at the Austin Art Works Center in Austin, Minnesota. In 2016 she was awarded Rochester Mayor’s Medal of Honor for Artistic/Cultural Achievement. In 2018 Cassandra opened her own Shop/Studio, Clover & Rose, which specializes in unique gifts, art, and vintage items. In 2022 and 2023 Cassandra was awarded Minnesota State Arts Board grants to work with under-served communities and neighborhoods in Rochester to create neighborhood murals. Cassandra lives in Rochester, Minnesota with her husband and two children.
Cassandra has exhibited as a solo artist as well as various group exhibitions including Winona State University, The University of Minnesota, and at the Austin Art Works Center in Austin, Minnesota. In 2016 she was awarded Rochester Mayor’s Medal of Honor for Artistic/Cultural Achievement. In 2018 Cassandra opened her own Shop/Studio, Clover & Rose, which specializes in unique gifts, art, and vintage items. In 2022 and 2023 Cassandra was awarded Minnesota State Arts Board grants to work with under-served communities and neighborhoods in Rochester to create neighborhood murals. Cassandra lives in Rochester, Minnesota with her husband and two children.
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Questions? Contact [email protected]
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