Wall Mural 15‘x20’ and 12‘x12’, acrylic on wall, Hurricane, South Dakota, 2016
Markus Tracy was born in Tokyo, Japan, and raised in Germany, Holland, and the United States. After completing his BFA from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico and his MFA from Otis College of Design in Los Angeles, California, Markus emerged as a multidisciplinary artist with a socially engaged practice focusing on murals, installations, and site-specific projects. Along with exhibiting his work nationally, Markus has been awarded numerous public art commissions/projects, grants, and artist-in-residencies throughout the United States. As a former Program Director for the City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs, his program, New Directions Youth Arts, was a recipient of the Committee on the Arts and the Humanities Coming Up Taller Award in 2010.
As a multidisciplinary artist, Markus teaches, partners, and consults with schools, communities, state art councils/commissions, municipal agencies, nonprofit organizations, and correctional facilities throughout the United States. Markus is listed as a Teaching Artist and multidisciplinary artist in the State Art Councils/Commissions of Nevada, Utah, South Dakota, North Dakota, Tennessee, Arkansas, South Carolina, Mississippi and for nonprofit organizations such as Animated Democracy–A Program of American for the Arts, Segerstrom Center for the Performing Arts Arts Teach, and Lifetime Arts Inc.
Artist Work Samples
Sample Programs Offered
Program Type: Arts Appreciation
Program Description:
Objective is to collaborate with public school/community in organizing a community mural project. Involving students, teachers, staff, and representatives from the community will help stimulate dialogue among participants. Dialogue will open themes concerning economic and/or social issues, environmental preservation and sustainability, community and/or school pride. The goals are to create a visual interpretation of everyone’s shared ideas and experiences by drawing, painting, use of personal photos, printed material, and spoken word. Images and material used will be compositionally arrange on a blueprint measuring 1′ to 1″ scale to actual mural. Once blueprint has been completed, all participants will take part in cleaning, priming, and drawing the grid to the wall. Following the grid transfer from blueprint to the wall, painting will begin.
Lesson Plan Example: Download File
Program Type: Arts Appreciation
Program Description:
SITE ON SITE is a site-specific art project that involves students painting a text message using one or two words on an exterior surface such as a sidewalk, a wall, or at the playground. The text is a title that represents the immediate surrounding area. Each text message represents a title that provokes reflection/thought of its immediate environment. Times New Roman font will be used to contrive a kind of advertisement; typical to book typography or mass-market paperbacks such newspapers and/or magazines. A red circle will be painted before each text message (similar to a bullet point) offering another point of reference of the exact location for students to observe the text message in relation to their surrounding environment. This kind of mapping serves as a signifier prompting students to ponder the personal, social, and environmental landscape.
Lesson Plan Example: Download File
Program Type: Arts Appreciation
Program Description:
Students will experience ways/means of linguistic growth through the arts. Through elements and composition of design, poetry, story-telling, and the understanding of our four senses, students will not only foster linguistic growth but illustrate and construct through various project base experiences.
Lesson Plan Example: Download File
