Brown County Artist
James Tracy
Rural Americana to Contemporary Serigraphs
~story and photo by Rachel Berenson Perry
“I
t’s always been nature, with me,” artist James Tracy responds to a question about his inspiration. And it’s no wonder. A native Brown Countian, he spent his formative years roaming in the woods during all seasons, from spring’s blooming redbuds, to fall forest tapestries of saturated color. Growing up in the 1950s, his timing was conducive to learning about painting from seasoned landscape painters—the last of Brown County’s original art colony. “From my earliest
42 Our Brown County • July/August 2022
memories I was captivated by the natural beauty of this place,” Tracy said. “This love of nature and my exposure to art and artists led to an awakening of whatever natural ability I may have had. I had a sense I was part of something unique, very special….I knew from an early age [that] art was my calling.” Starting with individual instruction from artist Kaye Pool at age eight, Tracy went on to study printmaking and photography at the University of New Mexico, followed by classes in drawing, painting, printmaking, and art history at Indiana University Southeast as well as Indiana University. After working various graphic design jobs in New Mexico and Los Angeles, Tracy returned to his hometown roots in the early 1990s. “I wanted to spend whatever time I have left in the county. It is home to me,” he stated. James Tracy has studied and admired painters in every genre from surrealist and abstract to Pop Art and photorealists. One of his current preferred artists is John Fabian Carlson (1875–1945). A Swedish-born American who specialized in winter scenes and became a leader of the Woodstock School of Landscape Painting, he was also a teacher of the late Brown County artist Fred Rigley. Tracy also expressed appreciation for the recent Brown County Art Gallery exhibition of paintings created in the State Park by Tim Greatbatch. “I admire his ambition and focus,” Tracy said. “If you want to do something well, you need to do it every day.” Despite his comfort and familiarity in his old stomping grounds, Tracy carries a torch for the landscape, culture, and people in northern New Mexico. When the ubiquitous summer green of
