Tracy has been creating and teaching fine art for over 10 years.  After discovering his passion for drawing and painting while in college in his childhood hometown of Tucson, Arizona, Tracy moved to Seattle and studied at Seattle Academy of Fine Art.  He then moved to Phoenix to continue his studies at Scottsdale Artists’ School, with stints at both Palette & Chisel Art Academy in Chicago and Watts Atelier of the Arts in Southern California.

Tracy has taught both drawing and oil painting at Scottsdale Artists’ School, the Phoenix Art Museum, and Southwest Art Academy, which he co-founded with his close friend, Michael Maczuga. Schacht was featured in Southwest Art magazine’s annual “21 Under 31” upcoming-artist preview issue in 2007.  His artwork is held in private collections from San Francisco to Toronto.

Tracy believes that drawing skills are the foundation of any great work of fine art, as evident in the Old Masters’ masterpieces.  At the same time, Tracy recognizes that, as with scholars in all other fields of study, progress and success come not from simply repeating what one’s predecessors have done but from taking what has been done and building upon it.  And this is equally true if one wishes to capture the interest of today’s multi-media generation – a traditional still life, landscape or portrait may be brilliant work of art but it may not resonate much of today’s society not already indoctrinated into the fine art circles. 

Without looking at the bigger picture of today’s world, Tracy believes that the fine art community may not capture the imaginations of today’s youth, and that the evolution of fine art could stagnate.  The integration of these traditional fine art elements with our contemporary society can be seen most recently in Tracy’s series of figure drawings in motion, which include both male and female divers, a violinist, and various nudes and semi-nudes in various stages of movement.  Through these works and future interpretations of his philosophy of integration, Tracy hopes to both capture the attention of those already part of the fine art community and gain the interest and passion of those who might not otherwise become interested in fine art.