Issue 1

Redefi ning the art of street painting

Awareness comes to Puri Beach

StumMagazineMeet

Tracy

September 2012Art and

3D chalk art

3D chalk artist Tracy Lee Stum is the world’s foremost interactive 3D street painter

TracyLee

Stum

Many artists eagerly anticipate the silence and solitary confinement of their studios. It is in this place that they can con-centrate and channel their creative talents into beautiful masterpieces. This is not the case, however, for interactive street painter Tracy Lee Stum. For her, the interaction and socializing is exciting. She tells me, “the per-formance aspect, and the fact that it’s ephem-eral, it’s not going to last, is really precious.” Despite its fleeting aspect, Tracy’s art can be found all over the world. This “asphalt ec-centric,” as she refers to herself on Facebook, and Pennsylvania native, keeps quite busy by producing images for advertisers, par-ticipates in non-profit art festivals (many of

Tracy Lee Stum. Mouse trap. 2010. Chalk. Sarsota Chalk Festival. Sarisota Florida. 10/16/2012. http://www.tracyleestum.com/gallery

Photograph by Lori Steed. 2010. <www.essencecaptured.com>

Redefining the Art of Street Painting

which help to fund children’s art programs), and is currently researching and developing a new way to redefine 3D art work.

A student of painting and drawing, Tracy graduated from the Temple Univer-sity, Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia with a Bachelor’s degree and went on to study naturalism at the Florence School of Art in Italy. Refer-ring to herself as an “eternal student,” I asked her how she came into street art.

“Back when I first started doing this, in 1998/99, there

was no one teaching it.-Tracy Lee Stum

I started practicing and play-ing around with principals.

Through all the failures that I experienced I really did learn a lot, and I actually wound up discovering and figuring out, some of the principals on my own—what the rules and laws were when you were making this work.” She acknowledges that some sacrifice has to be made when large images are drawn in 3D. Some beauty

may be lost in particular areas in order for the entire piece to work. Obviously though,

as anyone can see by looking at her art, the sacrifice is well

worth it.A lover of travel, Tracy has participated in festivals all over the United States, as well as in Mexico, China, and India. Discussing two particu-lar festivals, Mood Indigo and Antaragni, located in Mumbai and Kanpur, India respective-ly, she can barely contain the excitement she felt conducting street painting workshops for these four day, annual, student cultural events. Acknowledg-

Tracy Lee Stum. Escape Of The Mummy. 2008. Chalk. Italian Street Festival ‘Youth in Arts’. San Rafael, California Accessed 10/12/2012. < http://www.anopticalillusion.com/2012/08/escape-of-the-mummy-by-tracy-lee-stum/>

Tracy Lee Stum. Oregon Coast. 2009. Chalk. Lincoln City Art Festival. Lincoln City, Oregon. Accessed 10/19/2012. < http://www.tracyleestum.com/3d-street-painting-at-lincoln-city-oregon>

ing that street painting in India is not exactly a common occurrence, Tracy relates the enthusiasm she encountered and her joy that art unites and is a “common language.”

As unique and breathtaking as this artist’s work may be, you won’t find it for sale. The reason: the images she creates at festivals are placed on prod-ucts and t-shirts that generate revenue for non-profit orga-nizations. For over fourteen years she has donated her work to over thirty organiza-tions and festivals worldwide. These events have raised mil-

To learn more about Tracy and her work, visit: www.tracyleestum.com

Tracy Lee Stum. Oregon Coast. 2009. Chalk. Lincoln City Art Festival. Lincoln City, Oregon. Accessed 10/19/2012. < http://www.tracyleestum.com/3d-street-painting-at-lincoln-city-oregon>

lions for various causes, in-cluding cancer research and art programs. Tracy displays her creations out in the open for all to see and enjoy. She donates her time and art to worthy causes and loves to educate others. She is the epitome of unselfishness. If you happen to be walking down the street and see her working, stop to admire it. Ask her questions. Learn. The next time it rains, it could all be gone.

Tracy Lee Stum. Puzzle. 2011. Chalk. TEDx San Diego. San Diego, Cali-fornia. Accessed 10/14/2012. < http://www.tracyleestum.com/3d-street-painting-at-lincoln-city-oregon>

Art and Awareness Come to Puri Beach

Working all weekend isn’t so bad if you get to hang out on the beach! The U.S. Consulate General Hyderabad conducted its first cultural program in Odisha by organizing an exhibit by a 3D sidewalk artist on Puri Beach. American artist Tracy Lee Stum visited India on a five-city tour hosted by the U.S. Embassy and consulates. As a member of the Public Affairs team at Con-sulate, I got to help her plan her visit to Odisha. Tracy chose to collaborate with famous Odisha sand sculptor Sudarsan Puttnaik. The two agreed on marine conversation as a theme, given they both hail from coastal cities – Sudarsan from Puri and Tracy from California — and are pas-sionate about environmental conservation. Sudarsan and Tracy had never met before this trip, but they found that they have much in com-

mon. Both of them believe in creating art in public for the public. While most art is created in private studios and displayed in galleries or museums, sidewalk paintings and sand sculptures are created in the public for the public. Tracy sees herself and Sudarsan as performers as well as artists, since pass-ersby often stop to watch the artists work. Tracy describes the process as “creating something out of nothing” and sees it as a work of art in itself.And it was a performance. Over the course of a day and a half, thousands of people stopped to observe the progress she and Sudarsan made. She would often stop to chat with them and explain the piece.Tracy calls her sidewalk painting and Sudarsan’s sand sculptures

marine conversation Tracy from California

“ephemeral art forms”

because they are created to last a short period of time before they deteriorate and disappear. As artists, both Tracy and Sudarsan have to view their final products with detachment and agree to let them go. When the final piece was completed, crowds gath-ered on the viewing platform to peer through a special lens that made the painting look 3D. Tracy’s painted dolphins looked like they were jumping out of Sudarsan’s sand sculpture into a pool right in the middle of the ground. Tracy is an artist, a performer, and also a teacher. She is committed to sharing her skills with oth-ers, and on her trip to India, she conducted work-shops for young artists in every city she visited. In Bhubaneswar, she spent a day at Bakul Children’s Library, and with the help of 50 young students and local artists, she transformed the street into an

art gallery. She demonstrated 3D techniques and worked individually with the artists. At the end of the day, the street was filled with brightly-colored 3D paintings. Teaching workshops is one of Tracy’s favorite activities because she loves meet-ing young artists who are eager to explore new techniques. I understood what she meant – it was so inspiring to be surrounded by energetic, cre-ative people as they worked together to use art to express themselves. Tracy’s effect on Odisha lives on. This week we heard about two young women in Odisha who were so inspired by Tracy’s ideas about public art that they have taken it upon themselves to pain public walls in Bhubaneswar. Read about their ef-forts to make the city more beautiful here.

Tracy’s art may be ephemeral, but her impact is not.

marine conversation Sudarsan from Puri