Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
KACANDA, Becca
KACANDA, Becca. (New York, NY-- ). As part of the holiday season starting in 1923, every president president presided at the National Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony in Washington, D. C. Part of the ceremony was a display of 56 Christmas trees representing each U. S. state, territory, and the District of Columbia. Each tree was decorated with ornaments created by artists living there.
Artists were chosen by how well them work represented their state's history. In 2016 the Iowa tree globes were the work of Becca Kacanda who had lived in Dubuque since 2010. Her work was chosen by the Iowa Arts Council. She had been a grant recipient for her Rotto Grotto project. Rotto, Italian for "broken," was inspired by the locally made grottos found around Dubuque. Kacanda had also been invited to bring the project to the 2016 DubuqueFest Fine Arts Festival and lead the community engagement project.
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Source:
Frenzel, Anthony. "Dubuque Artist Creates 12 Ornaments for National Christmas Tree Lighting," Telegraph Herald, December 12, 2016, p. 1