BIO
Matt Tracy has been making art in Providence since 1999, focused mainly on painting and map-making, with occasional forays into mixed media three-dimensional work. A deep interest in plants and natural systems led him away from visual art for a few years and into a 15 year career in organic agriculture and natural resource conservation. After a hiatus of 8 years, he returned to a regular studio practice and exhibitions in 2018. The insights, skills and ideas gained through the work of building and running an organic vegetable farm, and his broader engagement in agricultural and environmental activism, are now intrinsic elements within the body of work he is currently producing..
Most recently, Matt collected and propagated wild plants from the Woonasquatucket watershed to create an installation for the Storefront Window space at the Dirt Palace in Providence which focused on native vs. invasive species, climate anxiety, and community perceptions and misconceptions around natural systems within the built environment. Titled "Invasive", the piece featured living specimens of locally collected Japanese knotweed growing within a 3 dimensional "carbon cycle map" of the Woonasquatucket River.