About the Artist
A native Californian, I graduated from California State University at Stanislaus with a degree in Fine Art. For as long as I can remember, I have been making Artwork. When I was a child, I carved soap, embroidered on burlap, painted rocks to look like birds and bugs, and began quilting by age nine.
My love of nature is the inspiration for my artwork. The following is an excerpt from my journal on one of my backpacking trips.
"A Great Horned Owl has been at our camp for hours. The brilliant night sky with endless stars, the Milky Way, and the silhouettes of great trees and snags are breathtaking, and make it hard to sleep. The coyotes yip and howl, and eventually circle our camp. I can hear a fawn and it's mother jumping through the brush. The Clark's Nutcracker was up early today, as was a hawk that flew by with a solitary cry.
Today we're camping at a lake with no name. That's just as well because no man owns this lake. A bear has been here, and ripped a log apart looking for grubs. There are many tadpoles and frogs, some no bigger than a fingernail. Dragonflies dart about and flycatchers sweep over the lake and return to their perch with their catch. This is a very shallow lake and probably on it's way to becoming a meadow.
The sunset is accompanied by a soft breeze, enough to blow my hair gently left to right. The silence is very valuable and equal to the stillness of the water. I become aware of so much more around me in the absence of human sound. A marmot is stretched out on a warm rock, so comfortable and at home. I feel I am at home too."
The recently completed mural at the Tuolumne Library is my best expression of the experiences I had in the wilderness. The mural is 16 x70 feet and is the largest public art piece in Tuolumne County to date.
I usually have more than one project going at a time. Currently I am working on the 8th grade gift to Twain Harte Elementary School. The kids picked the subject matter and I am painting a mural for them. The mural will surround a clock that will be placed in the gymnasium.
More pictures to come as the mural progresses.
I love cats!
tracy@tracyknopf.com
And here is the final project.
In the gymnasium, the mural surrounds the new clock.
