PLAYA Staff

Elizabeth Quinn

Interim Executive Director

Elizabeth Quinn is Co-Director of Fieldworks Consulting. Since April 2018, Fieldworks Consulting has helped launch residency programs around the country. Clients include: at Oak Spring Garden Foundation in Upperville, Virginia; Pine Meadow Ranch in Sisters, Oregon; NM Bodecker Foundation in Portland, Oregon; and The Volland Foundation in Volland, Kansas. Fieldworks Consulting has also worked with different organizations to help facilitate meetings, do organizational assessments and strategic planning including Sitka Center for Art and Ecology in Otis, Oregon; Creative Arts Industries Commission of Kansas; Chamber Music at the BARN in Maize, Kansas; Playa; and In A Landscape based in Portland, Oregon.

Before Fieldworks Consulting formed, Quinn was the Programs Director at Caldera. As part of Caldera’s Leadership Team, Quinn helped provide strategic and creative direction for all of Caldera programs and initiatives. In 2015, Caldera received the National Arts and Humanities for Young People Award from the White House. Also in 2015, Quinn was the project manager for Fallen Fruit Portland which was a suite of five site-specific projects taking place throughout Portland in October and November 2015. This project included: “Paradise,” an exhibit by the artists collaborative Fallen Fruit at the Portland Art Museum; “The Geography of We,” a youth curated exhibition at Wieden + Kennedy; “Division of Identification” installed by Fallen Fruit throughout the Parks Blocks of Portland, eight commissioned works also throughout Portland by Oregon-based artist; and Urban Fruit Trails planted around Portland.

In 2016, Quinn was selected for the National Guild for Community Arts Education’s Leadership Institute. Previous to her work at Caldera, Elizabeth was the Founding Editor of High Desert Journal, a publication that strives for a deeper understanding of the interior West through arts and literature and was the Director of The Dalles Art Association. Having worked in a variety of areas, Elizabeth has developed in-depth knowledge of arts communities across the state and country and an understanding of the unique needs of artists from diverse backgrounds.

Mark Hedrick

Site & Facilities Manager

I have been a resident of Summer Lake for 23 years, and I first visited PLAYA during a fire preparedness review for the High Desert Rangeland Fire Protection Association in July 2018. After finding out that PLAYA was hiring a full-time Site & Facilities Manager, I began work here in September 2018. My expertise in decreasing fire risk will continue to be of value, now from an insider’s view. I am a seasoned wildland firefighter, former facilities/fire manager for The Nature Conservancy, and specialist in Geographic Information Systems. I am excited to be at PLAYA and very much look forward to managing the facilities and meeting new residents from all over!

Shawna Negus

Cuisine and Lodging Manager

I love my job at PLAYA because I love food and making people feel welcome. There’s so much pleasure in imagining and creating delicious entrees, salads, and desserts for the people who come here from all over. I also take pride in readying PLAYA’s cabins for new residents. I grew up in this county but have lived in many beautiful places from Alaska to Arizona. Now I’m fortunate to call this area home again, as it’s my favorite place of all, where I have a wonderful garden, family, and many friends.