Trapped
- Artist: Robin Taylor
- Title: Trapped
- Media: Bronze, stained steel, wire, and acrylic
- Dimensions: 12 in. h x 12 in. w
- Date: 1999
Same sculpture, three different views
- Biographical Information: Although Robin wasn't born Deaf, she is still a huge member of the community. She was young when she was diagnosed with Scar Tissue Damage and an experimental pill was able to help her regain most of her hearing. However, she had a tumor removed in 1980 which left her hearing very limited. By the age of 17, Robin left home to pursue an acting career. Even after her surgery which affected her hearing, she still continued to act on stage and on TV. In the 1990s, Robin began to drift from acting and focused more on sculpting. She enjoys sculpting from her own history and theatrical background. She earned her BFA in Acting from United States International University School of Performing Arts and later on he got her MFA in Acting from UCLA. (Biography)
- Artist's Statement: "The philosophy behind my sculpture comes from a very private place. Many of my works deal with the emotional frustration of being between two language worlds and I use my past history, medical events and daily life experiences to create them."
- Background Information: "Trapped is about the frustration, physical pain and inner loss and rage we all feel sometimes. (It's a personal piece for me). The Wire Mask represents our façade. Our emotional and physical covers. The little girl is that very private fear inside all of us."
- Connection to Theme: As discussed in my last post regarding Ellen Mansfield's painting, Deaf people aren't always happy and proud as their culture portrays them to be. I feel it is important to talk about the negative sides of being Deaf because it can be hard if the Deaf don't have a good support system at home willing to communicate through signing. I have learned that there are many families who have Deaf children and don't bother learning sign; there is literally no communication between the child and family, but I will get more into this later on. Robin's sculpture is very emotional, raw, and vulnerable which is a big reason I wanted to show it. Deaf people portray themselves as proud of who they are and that they never want to change; however, Trapped tells otherwise. I'm sure Deaf people are proud of their culture, but at some point, they must have all been able to relate to this sculpture. It has to be frustrating, enraging, and scary at times for the Deaf to live in a majority-hearing world, even if they don't want to admit it. However, I feel this is what makes their culture so empowering and prideful. They may be afraid inside, but they don't let it show and continue to face the world with a strong and proud attitude.
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