Bunny Rogers’ “Mandy’s Piano Solo in Columbine Cafeteria” (2016) is a 13-minute animated video that serves as the central element of her larger installation Columbine Cafeteria. The video presents an animated female character, modeled after the “Sexy Dumpster Teen” from the early 2000s MTV animated series Clone High, crouching at a grand piano inside a reconstructed version of Columbine High School’s cafeteria. The setting is filled with falling snow. The character drinks red wine while performing cover versions of Elliott Smith songs in a melancholic style. The installation is typically presented in a dimly lit room with continuous artificial snowfall. It includes a real lavender-colored piano bench containing pairs of “Mandy socks.” Additional elements feature replica cafeteria furniture (some intact, some altered), memorial objects such as candles and trash, and other sculptural components referencing the 1999 Columbine school shooting. Created when the artist was reflecting on events from her childhood, the work combines 3D animation, sculpture, and installation. It draws on references from youth media culture, pop music, and historical events. The piece explores intersections of memory, loss, and adolescent experience through a blend of nostalgia and constructed environments.

Bunny Rogers: Mandy’s Piano Solo in Columbine Cafeteria (2016) / What a Wonderful World. Julia Stoschek Foundation in Los Angeles, Variety Arts Theater, Los Angeles, February 18, 2026.