Taylor
Fawcett

BIO

Taylor Fawcett is a St. Louis native and BFA candidate at Bradley University who will be graduating with concentrations in both ceramics and sculpture. For the past two years, Fawcett has worked as the university’s Gallery Assistant and has managed the pour floor within the sculpture department’s bronze foundry. During his final year in Bradley’s BFA program, Fawcett prepped and poured all of the metal that was cast, totalling near five thousand pounds of bronze in the 2020-2021 academic year alone. In 2019 Fawcett was shown in Peoria Magazine, in a feature about the newly established Black Dog Metal Arts, which would be bringing small scale private casting to the Peoria area. Fawcett had a large hand in the design and fabrication of a cupola furnace in partnership with Black Dog which would first be used at the historic Sloss Furnaces in Birmingham. The furnace was initially crewed by a team of Bradley students for which Fawcett was able to serve as a captain in a student cupola contest. Since first pouring iron in Alabama, Fawcett has had the opportunity to help crew several pours, including pours at Sculpture Trails in Solesbury, Indiana, which were open for public viewing. Fawcett is currently working to complete a second, improved cupola with recent Bradley graduate Matt Hoffert. The pair have already built and run a small aluminum furnace together. Prior to his time at Bradley, Fawcett had very limited experience with sculptural work, but was not unfamiliar with the processes. At this time he was still heavily engaged in the arts and served as his school’s National Art Honor Society President, leading a completely student facilitated exhibition. During his senior year of highschool, Fawcett put in some 125 hours of labor on the full restoration of a 1974 Honda CB200. This was the largest project he had taken on at the time, and forced him to learn a lot about the tools involved, welding, and general application of design principles on a three dimensional model. Fawcett has since aided in the restorations of several vintage Honda motorcycles with Slipstream Creations which have appeared in publications like BikeBound and Silodrome. Fawcett has also worked on custom fabrication projects with Slipstream Creations, including an aluminum stairway in a repurposed YWCA in St. Louis. Fawcett has just completed his first life size bronze figure, which will be shown in the first round of public art for Peoria’s recently established Donovan Sculpture Garden. Fawcett hopes to continue creating large figurative bronzes and plans to pursue an MFA in sculpture after taking some time outside of academia to build a larger portfolio.

Artist Statement

I am particularly drawn to the human condition – fascinated by the idea that there are aspects of our experiences that are seemingly impossible for us to define. I use my work to navigate my own thoughts and experiences, but I aim to keep it unmarred by the details of my relationship with each sensation I explore. 

My intent is to shift the focus of my work from the subject’s identity to the experience in question. I hope that in including specificity through symbolism as opposed to character development, I create a space in each piece for the viewer to interact with a version of themselves.

An effective visual artist has the tools to break the boundaries of language. During my creative process I first aim to discern the profoundly human elements of my own idiosyncrasies, and then to communicate those at their most basic levels. 

In my culminatory piece, Sweet Like Lemonade, I explore the layers and duality of decision through indecision, false comfort and a tendency to prejudice for the devil we know. The life size bronze features a seated girl, blindfolded but still interacting with a small yellow bird. The figure sits upon an expanse of draped fabric and cushioning to accentuate her state of comfort and complacency. 

In the past I have worked in stone carving, steel fabrication and bronze, aluminum and iron casting. My provisional focus is expanding my visual vocabulary and adding as many creative processes to my toolkit as I can. I am currently delving deeper into the world of metal casting; investigating various miscasting and archaic techniques. Part of this research has been the design and construction of both cupola furnaces and a crucible furnace. 

SELECTED WORKS