Read along monthly as we celebrate creativity, local events, shared stories, opportunities and artist spotlights.

IN THE NEWS
From the Truckee Cultural District

Photos: Jeff Freeman

March brings the celebration of both Youth Art Month and Women’s History Month, recognizing the importance of fostering young creativity and honoring the profound influence of women in the arts and beyond. Youth Art Month encourages young artists to explore their talents and develop their creative voices. In Truckee, there are plenty of ways to celebrate—check out Made By Me, a new downtown artist space designed for hands-on creativity, explore the Truckee Roundhouse, which offers youth-friendly workshops or discover monthly art and science activities at KidZone Museum.

At the same time, Women’s History Month highlights the impact of women in arts, culture, leadership, and innovation. Truckee is home to many women-owned businesses that contribute to the town’s vibrant creative and entrepreneurial spirit. Read more about some of Truckee’s inspiring women leaders in this Truckee.com feature.

March is also the perfect time to explore local art! The Artists@Work! opening reception on February 20 at the Steve Randall Community Rec Center was a wonderful evening celebrating the artists and projects funded through the Upstate California Creative Corps. The installation, on display through April 15, tells many stories of artists making positive community impact and reaffirms the importance of artists engaging with society’s most critical issues, fostering sustainability and rural resilience.

This month will mark the start of our Listening Sessions, part of the Culture Forward Action Plan for arts and culture in Nevada County.  Sessions will happen county-wide starting with six Truckee locations over two days March 19 & 20. More information can be found below. If you haven’t yet, please take a few minutes to complete our anonymous survey and support this important community initiative. Whether you're a visitor, local, artist, or business owner, your perspective matters. Let’s build a vibrant creative future together!  Take the Survey!

CREATIVES MEETUP
Tahoe Truckee School of Music

Join Truckee Cultural District and Truckee Arts Alliance for our March Creatives Meetup. Whether you're an artist, musician, maker, or creative enthusiast, this is your space to network in Truckee.

Enjoy drinks, light bites, and great company, the evening also includes live musical performances from talented students & instructors from Truckee Tahoe School of Music! This free event is open to all creatives and arts supporters—come be part of Truckee’s vibrant cultural community!

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Wednesday, March 26, 2025

5:00 – 7:00 PM

Tahoe Truckee School of Music

10038 Meadow Way, Suite E, Truckee, CA 96161

CULTURE FORWARD
Nevada County’s Arts & Culture Action Plan

Culture Forward is a bold, five-year action plan shaping the future of arts and culture in Nevada County—and we need your voice! We're partnering with Scansion, a people-centered design firm, to ensure this plan reflects our community, with a special focus on our two California Cultural Districts. In addition to participating in our survey, here’s how you can get involved:

Join a Truckee listening session during Scansion’s in-person visit!       

MUSE
Featured Stories

TRUCKEE’S DARK SKIES
Celebrate, Capture, and Explore the Night

Photo: Grant Kaye, our March Artist Spotlight

Truckee’s Dark Skies Initiative is in full swing, celebrating the beauty of our starry night skies and promoting responsible lighting practices. Save the date for International Dark Sky Week, coming up April 21-28! Stay tuned for more details on community events and ways to participate locally.

Calling all night sky photographers! The 2025 Dark Skies Photo Contest is on the horizon, with details being announced soon. Whether you’re a seasoned photographer or a first-time stargazer with a camera, we can’t wait to see the 2025 submissions! Additionally, upcoming Dark Skies Workshops will offer hands-on opportunities to learn about night photography, astronomy, and the importance of preserving dark skies. Stay tuned for more details coming soon!

Celestial Sightings in March: Around the March 10 new moon, look for the Orion Nebula, one of the brightest nebulae visible from Earth, sitting just below Orion’s Belt. Also, keep an eye out for Venus and Jupiter, which will be shining VERY brightly in the evening sky. On March 14 we’ll witness a total lunar eclipse. This lunar eclipse will be visible in its entirety from almost all of North America, including here in Truckee!

The Best Stargazing Spots in Truckee: For the ultimate night-sky viewing, head to Donner Lake Vista Point, Prosser Reservoir, or Martis Valley or Martis Peak Road—away from lights, where the stars truly shine.

FUNDING & OPPORTUNITIES

SCENE & UNSEEN
March Events

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT
Grant Kaye

Photo: Palisades Tahoe captured by Kaye

The Allure of the Night Sky

Kaye’s fascination with night photography began in 2008 while working a desk job for the Town of Truckee. Feeling creatively stifled, he turned to photography after hours, reconnecting with the craft his father had taught him in a darkroom in Hawaii.

“Night photography allowed me to vent my frustration at not being able to see outside all day by seeking out the epic nightscapes of Tahoe and the American West,” Kaye recalls.

By 2012, he had left his job to pursue photography full-time, opening a gallery and studio in downtown Truckee. Watching long-exposure images emerge on his camera screen evoked the same thrill he had felt as a child developing prints in his father’s darkroom.

Yet, as social media rewarded popularity over originality, Kaye grew disenchanted. Rather than compete for likes, he pivoted to teaching night photography workshops, finding fulfillment in guiding others to create stunning images of the cosmos.

Creativity at Truckee Tahoe Lumber

In 2021, Kaye took on a new challenge as Director of Marketing and Community Outreach at Truckee Tahoe Lumber (TTL), where he oversees both marketing and the company’s charitable giving initiatives.

“At TTL, I get to run a fully outfitted creative studio, producing commercial photography and video content,” he explains. While shooting lumber operations differs from capturing the Milky Way over Rainbow Bridge, it still offers artistic challenges—especially when filming architectural masterpieces built with TTL’s materials.

Outside of photography, Kaye channels his technical expertise into 3D wooden maps, crafted with the CNC machine at the Truckee Roundhouse. His project, Terra Ligna (Latin for “wooden Earth”), blends GIS digital cartography, machining, and woodworking to create intricately detailed topographic pieces.

Building Truckee’s Makerspace

Kaye’s journey to building a creative hub in Truckee began in 2010 when he and a team of friends competed in the Red Bull Creation makerspace challenge in Brooklyn. The experience introduced him to the power of makerspaces—shared workspaces where people could pool resources, learn new skills, and bring creative ideas to life. Inspired, Kaye and his friends set out to create one in Truckee.

“The idea fizzled at first due to high rents and not asking the right questions,” Kaye recalls.

But by 2014, a renewed effort alongside Chris ‘Chief’ Gregor and Morgan Goodwin gained traction. A pivotal moment came when Kaye reached out to Andrew Cross, CEO of Truckee Tahoe Lumber (TTL), who supported the idea and allowed his Marketing Director, Emily Vitas, to help organize the effort. With additional backing from Steve Hoyt, Hardy Bullock, and key community members like Robert Suarez, Karin Johnson, Elsa Corrigan, Lauren Hickey, Ray Villaman, Marc Hermsmeyer, and Andy and Alicia Barr—as well as crucial support from the Martis Camp Foundation and the Truckee Tahoe Airport District—the vision finally took shape. In 2015, the Truckee Roundhouse opened its doors.

“Above all, the best decision we made was hiring Karyn Stanley as Executive Director,” Kaye says. “Her leadership has transformed the Roundhouse into the thriving creative community it is today.”

Exciting Projects on the Horizon

Kaye’s current work spans multiple artistic ventures, including a 40x60” lightbox installation of his iconic photo of Jeremy Jones surfing Lake Tahoe wind waves for the new Sierra Surf Club restaurant in Tahoe City.

With longtime collaborator Mike Crabb of Branched Out Designs, he’s also preparing for the Truckee Roundhouse Maker Show in June, where they’ll showcase a stunning Crater Lake bar top made from recycled Red Dog chairlift haul rope, which recently won an award at the Reno Tahoe International Art Show.

A particularly meaningful project in the works is a Hawaiian Islands 3D wooden map coffee table, incorporating 1930s pineapple plantation irrigation valve stems as brass supports—a nod to Kaye’s childhood in Hawaii.

And in a dream project, Kaye hopes to carve a large-scale Martian topographic map from NASA’s MOLA (Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter) data into a redwood slab dining table.

“If anyone knows someone at SpaceX or NASA, tell them I’m ready to make this incredible table—my DMs are open!” he jokes.

Finding Inspiration in Truckee

For Kaye, the Truckee Roundhouse remains the beating heart of his creative inspiration.

“It’s one of the few places where doctors, ski coaches, teachers, artists, entrepreneurs, and longtime locals still come together as equals to build and create,” he reflects. “Living here is hard—especially as an artist—but the Roundhouse makes it just a little easier. It’s magic.”

From the depths of the night sky to the intricate details of wooden landscapes, Kaye’s journey proves that creativity knows no bounds.

Photo: Jeremy Jones surfing Lake Tahoe, captured by Kaye

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