When the previous art teacher, Stacy Rosende, took a new job in New York, a new art teacher was naturally needed. The school did not have to look too hard for her successor, because Brian Taylor was already applying for the job.  

“I’ve known Mrs. Rosende since the late ‘80s, early ‘90s,” Taylor said. “She gave me a lot of recommendations, so I kind of had the inside scoop from her when she got her job at Golden Acrylic Art Company. I immediately emailed her and expressed interest and applied for a job.” 

In Taylor’s “young rebellious days,” he never imagined himself dedicating so much of his life to teaching art. However, Taylor has spent the last 19 years of his life at Wilson Middle School doing exactly that, which helped make his transition to Plant easier. 

“A lot of my students I had last year [at Wilson] I’m seeing in the hallways,” Taylor said. “In fact, they were very surprised to see me here this year.” 

Before his years as a teacher, Taylor received a degree in fine arts with a focus in painting and minor in anthropology from the University of South Florida. He then worked as a scenic artist from the age of 19 until he turned 30. As a scenic artist, he did large-scale projects for places like Busch Gardens, Universal Studios and Sea World. 

After working in commercial art for 12 years, he went into teaching full time. 

“I love to see my students grow and express their ideas through art, and … what I get my biggest kicks from is seeing my students flourish as artists,” Taylor said. 

Taylor appreciates the opportunity he has to instruct students at a higher level, as he now teaches the Advanced Placement and Honors level courses in addition to traditional courses.  

“There’s really a broad range of students working in different medias,” Taylor said. “Everyone’s got different ideas, so it’s really exploratory, and I love that about the job.” 

Along with his duties as an instructor, Taylor also took on the role of sponsor to the National Art Honors Society. The club’s first board meeting was Monday, Sept. 10, and they discussed some potential projects for the year.  

“We talked about a possible mural project that we are going to do through the club, and that should be pretty interesting,” Taylor said.  

Outside of the classroom, Taylor lives in a 105-year-old house in historic Ybor City with his wife and his four cats.  He enjoys traveling, collecting records and dabbles in deejaying — strictly vinyl — during his free time.  

“I tend to get a lot of art opening gigs,” Taylor said. “I deejay most of the gigs at the USF Contemporary Art Museum.”  

Taylor has worked in many different mediums over the years, but most recently he has been working on large-scale wood cut prints. These works are seven to eight feet tall and printed on fabrics that are then shown in galleries.  

Even with his out of school hobbies, he makes it clear that his students are his focus and them being able to express themselves is his goal. Through his passion for art, he strives to share his knowledge with his students and help them reach their full potential as artists.  

“I’m a teacher because I teach art, and that’s my life,” Taylor said.