The retired gallery director devotes himself to his second job as an art curator

But early retirement didn’t suit him. He is ready for a second act.

Taylor, 64, is now curator and deputy director of the Waterloo Centre for the Arts.

“I’ve been doing a lot of work in the garden and around the house, but I’ve had a hard time adjusting to retirement. It’s not what I imagined it would be. I’ve missed the contact with the public and the day-to-day activities,” said Taylor of Waterloo.

When he learned that his longtime colleague Chawne Paige had been promoted to director of the WCA, Taylor wondered who would succeed Paige as curator. “Then I decided to retire in a big way and applied for the position.”

“I felt like it was my destiny to be here,” Taylor said. “I’m coming back a little late, but I don’t feel like I’m 64. I don’t want to quit. I’m really excited to get back into it.”

At UNI, Taylor designed and installed nine or more major exhibitions each year in the gallery and online, as well as numerous mini-gallery showcases. He worked closely with faculty members and guest curators, publicized exhibitions and events at the gallery, served on academic and community committees, taught courses, and authored all of the gallery’s publications. He also raised funds, applied for grants, and was responsible for overseeing the management and maintenance of UNI’s permanent art collection.

Taylor earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and master’s degrees from the University of Iowa in Iowa City. He also studied abroad in Dortmund, Germany. His professional experience includes serving as director of the University of Iowa Fine Arts Council and as a mentor and advisor at the Summer Institute for Humanities and Fine Arts at Herzen State Pedagogical University in St. Petersburg, Russia, where he also organized a major exhibition of UNI faculty artwork.

In his new role at the Center for the Arts, Taylor will be responsible for acquiring, storing, and displaying collections; selecting exhibition themes and designs; planning and managing events; cataloging and documentation; and training staff, volunteers, and interns. In addition, he will negotiate the purchase, sale, exchange, and loan of collections; organize tours and lectures; write and review grant applications; and raise funds.

WCA acts as a gathering place for the community, another reason Taylor is excited to join the team.

“The center offers a tremendous number of public events and programs,” he said. “I want to learn all about these events. I’ve wanted to be part of this community since I moved here from Iowa City in 2008. For a long time, I commuted from Iowa City to UNI.”

Taylor previously served on Waterloo’s Culture and Arts Committee. “I learned about all the events and activities the centre is involved in and was impressed. Now as an employee, I get a first-hand look at the operation.”

The new curator spends hours exploring the center’s five large vaults, which are filled with works of art – Midwestern art, including Grant Wood, American decorative arts, international folk art, including Mexican folk art, and the world’s largest public collection of Haitian art.

“I’m excited to go in there with my white gloves on and look at all the objects. I’ve been touring the collections and am now becoming more familiar with each piece. It’s even more than I imagined. I’m impressed by all the artwork – what’s there is amazing. I’m particularly impressed by the Haitian collection,” Taylor said.

“These are very different objects to the ones I worked with at UNI. It’s a more community-based collection, which I really like. I’m looking at ways to incorporate an exhibition theme around all the different genres and nationalities, and will be designing the first details of an exhibition this month.

“If I’m drawn to an object, I’ll see if I can build around it. There’s still a lot to learn,” Taylor added.