It was in 1969 that Arnold Taylor with his wife Graciela and their two very young children Grace and Brenda arrived at Walnut Hill School.
I had known a little of his background and it was so interesting to hear a little more from Graciela in a recent telephone conversation. For me it was insight into what made Arnold tick.
Arnold was born in Argentina to British parents and at the age of ten his parents enrolled him in Oundle school, 68 miles north of London England. The school was founded in 1556 and is the third largest boarding school after Eton and Millfield. Already Arnold was personally experiencing the life of a boarding student. Soon it was the start of the second world war and London and the surrounding areas were being bombed. It was too dangerous for either he or his parents to travel across the Atlantic because of the German submarines so Arnold remained in England and stayed at a Parsonage when school was not in session. Growing up without his family was very hard but he occupied his free time cycling into the English countryside with his sketch book in hand and made detailed drawings of churches, buildings, and houses in the surrounding villages. His teachers liked his sketches and recognized Arnold’s talents and recommended that he apply to the then St Martin’s College of Art in London.
After his studies there he lived for a while in Paris, France, studying directly the art of the masters principally at the Louvre and the Rodin Museums and then at the Museo del Prado in Madrid,Spain. He lived in Madrid for four years and while there he taught ESL at the School for the Diplomatic Core and travelled to places like Toledo to see the work of El Greco at the Church of San Tome.
He then travelled back to The Americas but not to Argentina the land of his birth. Arnold went to live in Mexico in the town of Torreon, Coah. During the twelve years that Arnold lived in Torreon he made a number of monumental sculptures, various public civic monuments, and numerous heads of important artists and professional people in the community. He also became well known for his public conferences on art and literature and his articles on art commentary in Spanish published in the local newspaper.
It was while living in Torreon and teaching there at the American School of Torreon where he was Assistant Headmaster as well as English teacher that he met Graciela. They were married and when their two children were still very young they had a chance to come to USA to teach at a girls boarding school in Maine and in 1969 they came to WHS.
WHS was still an all girls school and The Taylor’s were the first couple to be dorm parents as at that time it was all women who were dorm parents. They lived in Westerly for a year and were then given “The Grey House” which was to be their home for 14 years. Here Arnold had his own studio and Graciela remembers him coming home most days after school and going to his studio. He was a prolific artist and this was a passion that he had all of his life. Arnold was also an avid reader who accumulated an excellent library that followed him wherever he went. His experiences of life in five countries and of life in England during the war, his university studies which obtained him a BA in English, his wide experience teaching ESL and English in three countries, his art studies in London and in the museums of Europe, his years of artistic work in Torreon and in the US, and his interest in astronomy that led him to build a six inches reflecting telescope which he used to show students constellations and stars in cloudless nights
This is the background of “The Renaissance Man” that we came to know.
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Now fast forward to 1980 when I met Arnold. His daughter Grace had already graduated from WHS and Brenda graduated the year that we arrived. Graciela was teaching Spanish and was taking night courses at the Harvard University extension program.
When our youngest son Andrew was born two months after we arrived, Arnold asked permission to photograph him as soon as we came home from hospital. He wanted to make a sculpture of Andrew. This was something that Arnold loved to do – sculptures of babies. He said that he loved the delicate formation of the ears and the pure innocence that he saw in their faces. He said “You can still see the Holy Spirit in them because they have just come from God.” I still have that sculpture and a print of his. His watercolor of pears and a bottle is one of the nicest and most fluid watercolors I had seen and I have it framed and hanging in my kitchen. The brown bottle was given to me by Graciela when she left WHS and it is also in my kitchen holding memories of Easters past and a promise for the future. I often look fondly at his watercolor of magnolias that he signed “To the Reid’s March 1984.”
In my years knowing Arnold I saw him donning many hats. I think it may have been his upbringing that gave him such fortitude and sense of dedication to the school. Years ago Oundle had been his family, his Alma Mater from which he received his values and work ethic, and now WHS was his extended family. He would be seen having breakfast at 7am and overseeing the dining hall at dinner. I remember that he would stand at the entrance to the kitchen and observe and correct anything that needed addressing, whether inappropriate behavior or a lack of silverware, Arnold was there. He was the best coversationalist and had a wonderful dry sense of humor.
He was an English teacher, he was an Art teacher, he was a sculptor, he was a painter, he was a printmaker, he taught ESL, he was in charge of running the dining hall and food service, he was in charge of housekeeping, he was Administrative Dean, he was the acting Head of school, he formed connections with Japan to bring students to WHS, he was a resource for the students who came from Mexico and South America, he was a father, he was a husband and he was a man that we were honored to call a friend.
It is therefore not hard to understand that the year book was dedicated many times to ”Mr Taylor.”
In late 1983 Arnold was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor and he handled that in the same way as he handled life – with a brave stoic attitude. After surgery in January 1984 he went back to work as long as he possibly could. Graciela remembers an incident which showed his character yet again. Arnold had been advised that his tumor was returning and that he should not work and remain at home. Graciela was meeting with his ESL Students one morning and Arnold walked in to the classroom to the surprise of Graciela and delight of his students. He said that he really wanted to see his students again and check that they were doing alright and wanted to know if they needed anything.This meeting was short lived as Arnold fainted with the exertion of walking down to Campus. Graciela called the ambulance but for some reason they could not bring the stretcher in because of the stairs etc. so four men carried Arnold out of the building on a chair. She said she can still remember the scene as if he were royalty being carried out. This was the last time he set foot on campus. As Graciela told me this story I smiled and thought that this was such a nice way to leave – head held high.
After Arnold died in 1984 the school made an award in his honor the “Arnold C. Taylor Award for Academic and Artistic Achievement.” This was a fitting award given in honor of this man who loved and excelled in both Art and Academics. He lived his life embodying the core values of the now “Walnut Hill School For The Arts” – “Community. Excellence. Growth. Creativity. Respect.”
In 1985 the Year book was dedicated to “Mrs. Taylor.” “You have been a symbol of courage and dedication to all of us. We appreciate your smile each day and value your knowledge and love of teaching.You have taken the time to work with us individually, so we, as individuals have voted to let you know we care. With many fond remembrances we dedicate this yearbook to you.” Graciela continued teaching Spanish until 1993 nearly 25 years after she arrived at WHS. She now resides in Canada close to her daughter Grace. Graciela took up watercolor painting and has developed in to a wonderful and talented artist – an ongoing legacy to the love of art and to her husband Arnold.