About the Artist

Claire Rasmussen (born 2004) grew up in Plainview, Nebraska, where the rural landscape, abandoned barns, and her family’s extensive documentation of daily life shaped her early imagination. Raised in an environment filled with home videos, photographs, and objects passed down through generations, Rasmussen developed a deep interest in how memory and family history influence identity. She currently lives and works in Vermillion, South Dakota.  

Rasmussen is completing her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art Education with an emphasis in painting at the University of South Dakota. From a young age, she told her teachers she wanted to be an art teacher, a path that became clearer in high school when her art teacher, Mrs. Silhacek, encouraged her to pursue the profession. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she explored special effects makeup and prosthetics as a creative outlet, expanding her interest in material-based processes. Her family has always supported her creativity; especially her father, who studied figure drawing in college and fostered her early artistic development.  

In 2026, Rasmussen worked as a Parks Explorer Instructor for the City of Vermillion, teaching children ages 3-8; leading hands-on art projects she designed and prepared. Her paintings have been selected for the Stillwell Exhibition (2026) and featured in the Cee Cee’s Gallery Student Exhibitions in both Fall 2025 and Spring 2026.  

After completing her student teaching, Rasmussen plans to find an art education position in the Sioux Falls area. She hopes to teach either elementary or high school art while continuing her studio art practice and submitting work to galleries and exhibitions.