The Professional Artists of St. Augustine (PAStA) Fine Art Gallery, of 214 Charlotte Street, St. Augustine, welcomes new acrylic painter, Tracy Lavely, to its co-operative art gallery.
Hailing from Indianapolis, Indiana, Tracy credits her hometown as the source for her early love of art, and the town where she met her husband of 41-years during high school.
Her mother, an artist, inspired her love for painting, and young Tracy spent many hours absorbing her mother’s lessons. Her sister also became an artist, but Tracy took a different life path. She graduated from Indiana University with a degree in Criminal Justice, got married, and moved, eventually settling in Northern Virginia.
After working various jobs in law firms, she found her career job with the Virginia Department of Corrections as a Probation and Parole Officer. Tracy was the Chief Probation and Parole Officer for Fairfax County, Virginia, managing a large office and staff, implementing creative programming, and collaborating with other community stakeholders to help people be better and to keep the community safe.
She participated and presented in many correctional trainings, seminars, and conferences around the state of Virginia, on leadership development for executives. In 2018, Tracy was awarded the national Outstanding Probation Executive of the Year.
Tracy has been painting regularly for the past five years. As a self-taught artist, she found using the palette knife as her primary tool in laying color allowed her to create texture in her beach and coastal-themed paintings. As a new resident of St Augustine, Tracy continues to expand her artistic vision and looks forward to meeting customers at the PAStA Fine Art Gallery.
About PAStA:
The Professional Artists of St. Augustine Fine Art Gallery (PAStA) on Charlotte Street, in downtown historic St. Augustine, Florida, was founded in 1982 by Jean Wagner Troemel, a champion of the arts, founder of the Winter Haven Ridge Art Association, served on the Florida Arts Group Board (FLAG), and spearheaded St. Augustine’s First Friday Art Walks. The gallery has served an international clientele a wealth of local talent and award-winning artists. The gallery’s mission is to showcase local and regional art and to educate and encourage area artists.
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
I did not connect with clay as an artistic outlet until mid-life. During a hectic and demanding career, while juggling family, job and my MBA, I needed a healthy outlet to release my frustrations while appealing to my sorely under-utilized creative needs.
One summer class gave me the impetus to redirect what little down-time I had into punching, pulling, coiling, pinching, slapping, and throwing this amazing and malleable material into anything my imagination desired. I found therapy through clay.
In the years since, I have received an Associate’s Degree from the New Hampshire Institute of Art in Manchester, New Hampshire, and set up my first studio in a basement of our house. Currently, my studio has moved above ground – to my garage, but includes a wheel, large Skutt kiln, slab roller and an array of clay and glazes that would make a chameleon dizzy. I am a proud member of the Professional Artists of St. Augustine Fine Art Gallery since October of 2021.
I work with a variety of clays and glazes – from mid-temp stoneware and shiny glazes to low-fire and matte underglazes. I find inspiration in nature, children’s stories and fables, and my own untamed imagination!
