Karen T. Taylor
Encyclopedia
Karen T. Taylor is an American forensic and portrait artist who has worked for over a quarter century helping resolve prominent criminal cases for a variety of law enforcement agencies throughout the world. Her primary expertise includes composite imagery, child and adult age progression, postmortem drawing and forensic facial reconstruction
. In the mid-1980s, Taylor pioneered the method of 2-dimensional facial reconstruction, by drawing facial features over frontal and lateral skull photographs based on anthropological data. Taylor is also well-established as a forensic art educator, fine art portrait sculptor, and specialist in the human face.
, developed an early aptitude for drawing and sculpting faces. She attended R. L. Paschal High School
, the University of Texas School of Fine Arts in Austin and the Chelsea School of Fine Art in London. While in England, she worked as a portrait sculptor for Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. Taylor returned to Texas and spent over 18 years as the Texas Department of Public Safety's first full-time forensic artist.
Taylor was a forensic art instructor for over twenty years at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia (until 2005) and other law enforcement academies, universities, art and medical schools internationally. She also conducts face-related training workshops for fine artists and specializes in highly accurate and subtly expressive portraits in bronze.
Taylor now lives in the Austin, Texas area.
During her career at the Texas Department of Public Safety, Colonel Dudley M. Thomas honored Taylor for service beyond the normal course of duty, "performing the difficult task of identifying victims and assisting in bringing dangerous criminals to justice".
Director Thomas recognized her "professionlism, ambition, and talent which advanced her status as a forensic artist to a position that leads the nation in providing a variety of forensic art techniques and services". The award made particular note of Taylor's ingenuity and initiative which led to the development of the
2-dimensional facial reconstruction technique that "has been recognized internationally, revolutionizing skull-to-face reconstruction and making an invaluable contribution to the Department, law enforcement and anthropological research."
Colonel Thomas cited Karen's "expertise, diligence and dedication in the performance of her duties" as "reflecting great credit upon her, the profession of law enforcement and the Texas Department of Public Safety".
Texas Women of the Century
After years of success as a forensic artist, helping capture criminals and identify their victims, Taylor was named one of the "Texas Women of the Century" in 1999, a tribute to the 100 most influential Texas women of the past century. The twenty four collaborating organizations of the Women of the Century Project described her as "the premier forensic artist in the world".
Taylor shared the honor with fellow recipients, Barbara Bush, Dale Evans, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Lady Bird Johnson, Barbara Jordon, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Governor Ann Richards, Mary Kay Ash and Elizabet Ney and others.
Dondero Award
In 2002, she was the first woman to receive the Dondero Award from the International Association for Identification
for her "outstanding contribution in the field of scientific identificaton".
Previous Dondero Award recipients include J. Edgar Hoover and Dr. Henry Lee.
A portrait sculpture of Mrs. Thomas Hart Benton V (Barbara) resides in the International Headquarters of the Order of the Eastern Star] in the Embassy Row area of Washington, D.C.
on FOX. One unidentified deceased case, done for the Chicago Police Department and AMW, can be seen on the show's website.econstruction of the young murdered girl led to her identification.
Taylor's work has also been featured on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, Court TV, the Discovery Channel, the History Channel, Telemundo and the BBC. CBS drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
created a forensic artist character based on Taylor and her artwork and hands have appeared on both the Las Vegas-based and New York-based shows. Taylor served as a "real life" consultant to museum exhibit "CSI: the Experience", a traveling interactive exhibition developed by the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History. Taylor has also contributed to the popular program Bones
on FOX.
In collaboration with Dr. Nancy Etcoff, professor of neuropsychology at Harvard Medical School, Taylor developed a generalized universal template for idealized feminine beauty. Taylor's drawings aired on Discover Channel feature Survival of the Prettiest, based on Etcoff's book by the same name. More recently, this work has been broadcast on Discovery's How Stuff Works, a portion of which can be seen on the howstuffworks website segment called "Prescribing Beauty: Faces and Perceptions of Perfection".
Taylor's resolved forensic identification cases have been profiled on various reality-based crime shows. The New Detectives
featured Taylor and her work in episodes "Faces of Tragedy", "Cold Cases" and "Drawing Conclusions". Forensic Files
has interviewed Taylor and shown her work in episodes entitled "Headquarters" and "Saving Face".
suspended from sheer cliffs.
Using a skull casting, Taylor also revealed, for the first time, the sculpted face of the Red Queen of Palenque, a Mayan queen who lived 1000 years ago. Teamed with a bioarchaeologist, Taylor's work on this historical case is documented in a video entitled "Mesoamerica: Forensic Artist Gives the Red Queen a Face" that can be found on the howstuffworks website.
Taylor was featured in American Artist Drawing magazine, Summer 2006 in an article titled, "Understanding Faces from the Inside Out" by Edith Zimmerman.
Forensic facial reconstruction
Forensic facial reconstruction is the process of recreating the face of an individual from their skeletal remains through an amalgamation of artistry, forensic science, anthropology, osteology, and anatomy...
. In the mid-1980s, Taylor pioneered the method of 2-dimensional facial reconstruction, by drawing facial features over frontal and lateral skull photographs based on anthropological data. Taylor is also well-established as a forensic art educator, fine art portrait sculptor, and specialist in the human face.
Background
Taylor, a native of Fort Worth, TexasFort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, developed an early aptitude for drawing and sculpting faces. She attended R. L. Paschal High School
R. L. Paschal High School
R. L. Paschal High School is a secondary school located in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It is part of the Fort Worth Independent School District and descendant of the city's first secondary school, Fort Worth High School, which opened in 1882. Robert Lee Paschal, an attorney from North...
, the University of Texas School of Fine Arts in Austin and the Chelsea School of Fine Art in London. While in England, she worked as a portrait sculptor for Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. Taylor returned to Texas and spent over 18 years as the Texas Department of Public Safety's first full-time forensic artist.
Taylor was a forensic art instructor for over twenty years at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia (until 2005) and other law enforcement academies, universities, art and medical schools internationally. She also conducts face-related training workshops for fine artists and specializes in highly accurate and subtly expressive portraits in bronze.
Taylor now lives in the Austin, Texas area.
Special recognition
Director's CitationDuring her career at the Texas Department of Public Safety, Colonel Dudley M. Thomas honored Taylor for service beyond the normal course of duty, "performing the difficult task of identifying victims and assisting in bringing dangerous criminals to justice".
Director Thomas recognized her "professionlism, ambition, and talent which advanced her status as a forensic artist to a position that leads the nation in providing a variety of forensic art techniques and services". The award made particular note of Taylor's ingenuity and initiative which led to the development of the
2-dimensional facial reconstruction technique that "has been recognized internationally, revolutionizing skull-to-face reconstruction and making an invaluable contribution to the Department, law enforcement and anthropological research."
Colonel Thomas cited Karen's "expertise, diligence and dedication in the performance of her duties" as "reflecting great credit upon her, the profession of law enforcement and the Texas Department of Public Safety".
Texas Women of the Century
After years of success as a forensic artist, helping capture criminals and identify their victims, Taylor was named one of the "Texas Women of the Century" in 1999, a tribute to the 100 most influential Texas women of the past century. The twenty four collaborating organizations of the Women of the Century Project described her as "the premier forensic artist in the world".
Taylor shared the honor with fellow recipients, Barbara Bush, Dale Evans, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Lady Bird Johnson, Barbara Jordon, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Governor Ann Richards, Mary Kay Ash and Elizabet Ney and others.
Dondero Award
In 2002, she was the first woman to receive the Dondero Award from the International Association for Identification
International Association for Identification
The International Association for Identification is the largest forensic organization in the world.The IAI was originally formed as the "International Association for Criminal Identification" in October 1915...
for her "outstanding contribution in the field of scientific identificaton".
Previous Dondero Award recipients include J. Edgar Hoover and Dr. Henry Lee.
Portrait sculpture
After years of artistically depicting "Bad Guys" and their victims, Taylor now focuses on honoring the "Good Guys" with a series of bronzes which commemorate various individuals who have made a significant contribution to society. Taylor's bronze sculpture of forensic scientist George Taft is displayed at the Alaska State Troopers Museum in Anchorage, Alaska. Taft's sculpture was the first in the series of Taylor's "Good Guys."A portrait sculpture of Mrs. Thomas Hart Benton V (Barbara) resides in the International Headquarters of the Order of the Eastern Star] in the Embassy Row area of Washington, D.C.
Consultant work
Since 1990, Taylor has been a contributor to America's Most WantedAmerica's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted is an American television program produced by 20th Television, and was the longest-running program of any kind in the history of the Fox Television Network until it was announced on May 16, 2011 that the series was canceled after twenty-three years, with the final episode...
on FOX. One unidentified deceased case, done for the Chicago Police Department and AMW, can be seen on the show's website.econstruction of the young murdered girl led to her identification.
Taylor's work has also been featured on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, Court TV, the Discovery Channel, the History Channel, Telemundo and the BBC. CBS drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is an American crime drama television series, which premiered on CBS on October 6, 2000. The show was created by Anthony E. Zuiker and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
created a forensic artist character based on Taylor and her artwork and hands have appeared on both the Las Vegas-based and New York-based shows. Taylor served as a "real life" consultant to museum exhibit "CSI: the Experience", a traveling interactive exhibition developed by the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History. Taylor has also contributed to the popular program Bones
Bones (TV series)
Bones is an American crime drama television series that premiered on the Fox Network on September 13, 2005. The show is based on forensic anthropology and forensic archaeology, with each episode focusing on an FBI case file concerning the mystery behind human remains brought by FBI Special Agent...
on FOX.
In collaboration with Dr. Nancy Etcoff, professor of neuropsychology at Harvard Medical School, Taylor developed a generalized universal template for idealized feminine beauty. Taylor's drawings aired on Discover Channel feature Survival of the Prettiest, based on Etcoff's book by the same name. More recently, this work has been broadcast on Discovery's How Stuff Works, a portion of which can be seen on the howstuffworks website segment called "Prescribing Beauty: Faces and Perceptions of Perfection".
Taylor's resolved forensic identification cases have been profiled on various reality-based crime shows. The New Detectives
The New Detectives
The New Detectives: Case Studies in Forensic Science is a documentary true crime television show that aired two to three different cases in forensic science per episode. Episode reruns currently air on the Discovery Channel, TLC and the Investigation Discovery network...
featured Taylor and her work in episodes "Faces of Tragedy", "Cold Cases" and "Drawing Conclusions". Forensic Files
Forensic Files
Forensic Files is an American documentary-style series which reveals how forensic science is used to solve violent crimes, mysterious accidents, and even outbreaks of illness. The show is broadcast on truTV, narrated by Peter Thomas, and produced by Medstar Television, in association with truTV...
has interviewed Taylor and shown her work in episodes entitled "Headquarters" and "Saving Face".
Historical pojects
Taylor has been involved in a variety of special art projects, particularly those of historical significance, which utilize modern forensic art identification techniques in a historical context. She created the first sculpted facial reconstruction of one of the Bo People, based on an 800 year-old skull from southern China. The Bo interred their dead in mysterious hanging coffinsHanging coffins
Hanging coffins are coffins which have been placed on cliffs. They can be found in various locations, including China, Indonesia, and the Philippines. In China, they are known as Xuanguan which also means "hanging coffin".-China:...
suspended from sheer cliffs.
Using a skull casting, Taylor also revealed, for the first time, the sculpted face of the Red Queen of Palenque, a Mayan queen who lived 1000 years ago. Teamed with a bioarchaeologist, Taylor's work on this historical case is documented in a video entitled "Mesoamerica: Forensic Artist Gives the Red Queen a Face" that can be found on the howstuffworks website.
Publications
Taylor authored the in-depth textbook, Forensic Art and Illustration, CRC Press, Boca Raton, London, New York, Washington DC, 2001.Taylor was featured in American Artist Drawing magazine, Summer 2006 in an article titled, "Understanding Faces from the Inside Out" by Edith Zimmerman.