Taylor Gallegos

How Sports Murals Came to Be

Taylor has been painting and drawing athletes since he was very young. Taylor has always had a love of portraiture and figural work, and images of athletes fit the bill perfectly.

He began with pencil sketches and watercolor paintings of his favorite athletes. Sports Illustrated for Kids published Taylor’s childhood paintings of John Elway and Alexi Lalas. He painted a larger-than-life Michael Jordan for his bedroom wall. On into high school he continued painting standout figures from all sports. With these images he got to practice lighting, shading, color, detail, expression of emotion, and anatomical intricacies.

When he wasn’t playing with color and line, Taylor played soccer, from pee-wee through adulthood.. Art and sports came together for him when he designed team shirts and gave friends paintings of their favorite athletes. An injury sent him on his current path of yoga and surfing.

Taylor studied art at Colorado State University. He pursued a double concentration in Drawing and in Painting. Fully diving into these two disciplines helped develop his skills of observational drawing, seeing and depicting special elements, mark making, and then color theory and the use of paints and mediums. The cherry on top was his semester abroad in Tuscany, Italy, where we has able to study the Renaissance Masters in person. These formal training elements later became the bedrock for the artwork he came to develop on large scales for large audiences.

After college, Taylor continued to practice his craft, painting on canvas, experimenting with new creative ideas like Live Art for events like festivals and weddings, small one- off mural projects, solo shows, and curating group shows. 

Then he was introduced to the world of professional murals. He was hired by a full- time muralist in San Diego to help with production of her projects. With that position, he learned about the world of paint products, best mural practices, and the business of murals. After a year as an apprentice, he was ready to branch out on his own.

In the past 10 years, Taylor has done murals of all shapes, sizes, design styles, and concepts. He obtained a C33 Painter’s Contractor’s license, and with that, he’s bonded and insured. He’s worked with top-level brands and organizations, bringing their visions to life. He’s now represented by nationally recognized gallery, Hotwater Gallery, based in Carlsbad, California. Taylor has become the artist we know today.

In recent years, he’s found his way back to sports artwork. The difference now is that it’s larger than life. His recent works have become iconic, intricate, powerful imagery representing top level teams and organizations. These murals depict memorable moments that conjure legendary greatness in human achievement. Athletes are portrayed in their glory, expressing their passion for the game.