Stacey Besst was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. Stacey has been teaching at the McConnell Art Center for the past 5 years. Class subjects range from photography and digital imaging to ceramics, printmaking, drawing and cartooning. He also runs a Teen Volunteer Camp for the City of Dublin in the summer geared towards leadership building and philanthropy. Stacey encourages students to utilize discovery, exploration, questioning, problem solving, experiences and sharing to build understanding and stimulate creativity.
Stacey often took family road trips as a child. This exploration drove him to create art and left a strong interest in discovery, culture, and understanding others. He learned to observe the world through drawing and later in life he picked up a camera. Stacey has used photography as an artistic tool to document and share experiences.
While earning his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography he realized his interest for exploration by portraying the diverse lives of people through photography. Stacey has documented all types of people, from the economically disadvantaged, to the eccentric visual fantasies of youth Cosplay culture. Stacey lived in Osaka, Japan and studied the cultural impact and history of Japanese comics (manga).