Sierra College

Table of Contents

Tours

  1. Art in Unexpected Places

    Take a self-guided or virtual tour highlighting campus art and other points of interest on our Rocklin campus.

    Stops

    1. Standing Guard Garden

      The Japanese Garden on the Rocklin Campus is the most lasting legacy from the Standing Guard Project. The garden is a remembrance and quiet refuge that serves as a reminder to protect the civil rights of all Americans.

      Hiroshi Matsuda, a local ceramic and bonsai artist, worked with a committee of college and community volunteers to design the environmentally-sensitive garden to reflect Japanese and American cultural influences. The enclosed garden includes a stone bridge, dry waterfall, rock garden, rock stream bed and lanterns set among the native oaks and other plants. The central feature is a prominent gate that students can walk through, which symbolizes their educational transition. 

    2. Communication Kachinas

      Anthony MakiGill and Archie Warren created twin metal sculptures designed to amplify voices. 

    3. Lotus - Direction Me and Bamboo Fence

      The Pond Improvement Project features work by the Sierra College Welding Club, local craftspeople and Sierra College faculty.

    4. Atrium Mural

      Designed and painted by students in Gary Graham's Art 301 (Mural Art) class in 2005, this mural on the 4th floor of the LR Building depicts portions of the Sierra Nevadas, Sutter Buttes, Central Valley and downtown Sacramento skyline.  

      The Mural was sponsored by the Associated Students of Sierra College (ASSC), Sierra College Patrons and Sierra College Friends of the Library.

    5. Metal Benches

      Metal benches created by the Sierra College Welding Club accent a hallway mural painted by Gary Graham's mural class on the fourth floor of the LR Building. 

    6. The Blue Garden

      This painted metal sculpture by Michael LeCompte was commissioned by the Sierra College Patrons and is located on the second floor of the LR Building.

    7. Ridley Art Gallery

      The Ridley Gallery exhibits high caliber work of leading regional, national, and international artists, as well as faculty artists, alumni, and students in several shows throughout the academic year. Recurring annual exhibitions include the Hallberg Award Exhibition and the Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition.

      This 1000-square-foot gallery was dedicated in the spring of 1998. The gallery is named in memory of Robert Ridley, an art professor who long believed a college gallery would enrich the cultural experience and understanding of students through exposure to local and nationally recognized artists.

    8. Natural History Museum

      Located in the S Building (Sewell Hall), the Sierra College Natural History Museum (SCNHM) and accompanying Planetarium are a regional landmark for thousands of youngsters, students, teachers, teens, adults and parents who come to engage, experience, and discover our collections.

      For more than 50 years, the SCNHM has provided inspirational scientific lifelong learning for its students and the community. Initially funded by a special grant from “Project Gold Mind,” the Museum’s champion and department chair, R.A. Underhill, oversaw the construction of exhibitions based on the rising theme of ecology. A true grassroots effort, faculty, students, and staff worked together for decades to build and augment the Museum’s collections, creating an array of displays examining Earth’s natural past.

    9. The Seed

      On a prominent campus knoll, Miles Pepper designed his kinetic sculptures to move with the wind like a seed. 

    10. Painted Metal Sculpture

      Mike Conlen's work was commissioned by the Sierra College Patrons to honor past Sierra College President Dr. Kevin Ramirez.

    11. Math Mural

      The Mathematics Department commissioned muralist Cathy Rowe to paint work showing the beauty of math and science in nature.