Taylor Chapman

Taylor Chapman (b. 1983) is an artist whose work explores distinctive communities and the circumstances that shape them. A sixth-generation Texan, Taylor was deeply influenced by Texas’s fierce sense of place and by his father, who taught him darkroom photography in a converted bathroom at the age of 16. After studying photography at Yale, Taylor spent years, while working as a teacher, documenting the places where he taught, including high-poverty regions of the American South and rural Japan.

His bodies of work include “Quanah”, exploring a dying Texas town where many American historical narratives collide; “People of the 21st Century,” a portrait of Japanese society via 500+ individuals from all walks of life, drawing inspiration from the work of August Sander; “On the Road,” chronicling Taylor’s 500-mile walk on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage; “Roundup,” which explores the world’s largest Rattlesnake Roundup in Sweetwater, Texas, with its 5,000 live snakes, beauty pageants, and gun shows; and “End of The Line,” documenting the 44 communities at the final stops of NYC’s subways.

Taylor’s photography has been exhibited in Japan and the United States; has won prizes at Yale and from the Summerlee Foundation; and has been featured in ArtNet, i-D Magazine, office Magazine, the Brooklyn Reader, Huck Magazine, and more.