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Tracy Lee Stum is a formally trained artist who found her way to the street to create spectacular art with chalk on the pavement of cities around the world. For six years she held the Guinness World Records for the largest chalk painting by an individual.
Tracy is passionate about inspiring artfulness, has been hired by car and entertainment companies, the International Olympic Committee, Super Bowl, DreamWorks Animation and she has served as an arts envoy for the U.S. Department of State.
Host David Kepron talks with Tracy Lee Stum about art, process, discovery and her new venture TiLT – A Tracy Lee Stum Museum at the American Dream entertainment complex in East Rutherford , NJ.
INFO ON TRACY LEE STUM
Tracy Lee’s Profile: linkedin.com/in/tracyleestum
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Website: tracyleestum.com
Email: info@tracyleestum.com
Twitter: tracyleestum
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tracyleestum/
Tracy’s Bio:
Tracy Lee Stumis an American artist best known for her 3D street paintings or chalk drawings.
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She at one point held the Guinness World Record for the Largest Chalk Painting by an Individual.[1]
Tracy Lee Stum began drawing as soon as she could clutch a crayon. She studied privately as a child and earned a bachelor’s degree at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia. She continued her studies in naturalism at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy.
A gregarious graffiti lover, Tracy began street painting in 1998 and is considered by Madonnari peers, festival directors and viewers alike as one of the finest street painters today. Known for splashing color in festivals and events in all corners and crevices of the globe, her paintings have won numerous awards & accolades – her only regret is that her masterpieces rarely fit on the fridge.
In 2006 Tracy added the Guinness World Record to her collection of vinyl for the largest street painting by an individual.
In 2013 she was honored to be a contributor on the Cannes Gold Lion award-winning team for their work in the now iconic Honda CRV commercial.
Experienced in multi-city campaigns for such clients as Cadillac, SoBe, and Dos Equis, Tracy is continually creating commissioned 3D and 4D works in chalk for advertising, public and private events, corporate PR and educational sectors.
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Her international team building skills have been utilized in developing street painting festivals in China, Mexico, India, Russia and throughout the United States. Her art travels well and is always up to date on all of its shots.
Tracy has been privileged and honored to serve as the US State Department’s 2012 cultural ambassador.
She’s toured Tajikistan and India creating 3D street paintings and teaching workshops at distinguished universities and art colleges to promote education, awareness and positive cross-cultural communication.
In 2013 Tracy put on clean pants and stepped effortlessly into management as she curated the first annual DO/AC 3D Chalk Festival in Atlantic City, New Jersey, showcasing 14 renowned international 3D street art & chalk artists.
Tracy’s chalk conversations speak to her vast audience with imagination, beauty and playfulness – often with a thick Italian accent.
Show Intro:
When was a kid, I loved going to the mall when they had artists exhibitions. I could watch for hours as artist of all stripes created magic in front of passersby. I was mesmerized as the sweep of a had could create a deep forest with a shaft of light cutting through the green, a galloping horse, or a crowded street scene.
When living in New York and the Philadelphia area I marveled at the graffiti artists whose mural paintings stretched the full height of buildings. Not only was I awestruck with the subject matter but the sheer size of these creations always left me wondering …How do they do that?
I remember going to a Bougereau exhibit in Montreal where the paintings were huge and seeing the Night’s Watch at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and being transfixed as people jostled for position all around me.
A few years ago, I started tuning into street art where skilled painters would use chalk to create masterful illusions of 3 dimensions on the pavement. These works, when viewed from a specific place, seemed to magically transform the warped image into a 3D experience into which you could place yourself.
I have spent years teaching perspective drawing where the size of the image fits on a drafting table. This took perspective to a whole new level for me.
Tracy Lee Stum is an American artist best known for her 3D street paintings made with chalk. At one point, she held the Guinness World Record for the Largest Chalk Painting by an Individual.[1]
She began drawing as soon as she could clutch a crayon. She studied privately as a child and earned a bachelor’s degree at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia. She continued her studies in naturalism at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy.
A gregarious graffiti lover, Tracy began street painting in 1998 and is considered by festival directors and viewers alike as one of the finest street painters today.
In 2013 she was honored to be a contributor on the Cannes Gold Lion award-winning team for work on the iconic Honda CRV commercial and is she continually creating commissioned 3D and 4D works in chalk for advertising, public and private events, corporate PR and educational sectors.
Tracy has travelled the world creating beautiful street art and been privileged and honored to serve as the US State Department’s 2012 cultural ambassador teaching workshops at distinguished universities and art colleges to promote education, awareness and positive cross-cultural communication.
We share a love of art and making paintings, though mine are still on canvas resting on an easel, and I am delighted to have Tracy share her passion and craft with us.
INFO ON DAVID KEPRON
BIO:
David Kepron is a multifaceted creative professional with a deep curiosity to understand ‘why’, ‘what’s now’ and ‘what’s next’. He brings together his background as an architect, artist, educator, author, podcast host and builder to the making of meaningful and empathically-focused, community-centric customer connections at brand experience places around the globe.
David is a former VP – Global Design Strategies at Marriott International. While at Marriott, his focus was on the creation of compelling customer experiences within Marriott’s “Premium Distinctive” segment which included: Westin, Renaissance, Le Meridien, Autograph Collection, Tribute Portfolio, Design Hotels and Gaylord hotels.
In 2020 Kepron founded NXTLVL Experience Design, a strategy and design consultancy, where he combines his multidisciplinary approach to the creation of relevant brand engagements with his passion for social and cultural anthropology, neuroscience and emerging digital technologies.
As a frequently requested international speaker at corporate events and international conferences focusing on CX, digital transformation, retail, hospitality, emerging technology, David shares his expertise on subjects ranging from consumer behaviors and trends, brain science and buying behavior, store design and visual merchandising, hotel design and strategy as well as creativity and innovation. In his talks, David shares visionary ideas on how brand strategy, brain science and emerging technologies are changing guest expectations about relationships they want to have with brands and how companies can remain relevant in a digitally enabled marketplace.
David currently brings his creativity and insight on brand experiences to an international audience as a member of VMSD magazine’s Editorial Advisory Board, as a Board Member of the Interactive Customer Experience Association (ICXA) and Sign Research Foundation’s (SRF) Program Committee.
He has held teaching positions at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology (F.I.T.), the Department of Architecture & Interior Design of Drexel University in Philadelphia, the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising (L.I.M.) in New York, the International Academy of Merchandising and Design in Montreal and he served as the Director of the Visual Merchandising Department at LaSalle International Fashion School (L.I.F.S.) in Singapore.
In 2014 Kepron published his first book titled: “Retail (r)Evolution: Why Creating Right-Brain Stores Will Shape the Future of Shopping in a Digitally Driven World” and he is currently working on his second book to be published soon. David also writes a popular blog called “Brain Food” which is published monthly on vmsd.com.
In September of 2020, he launched the “NXTLVL Experience Design” podcast which brings listeners dialogues about “DATA: Design, Architecture, Technology and the Arts.” His guests include thought leaders who are driven by a passion to create the ‘New Possible’ and promote new paradigms of experiences into the mainstream.