Forensic Art
Forensic art holds great potential power. One image can literally be responsible for the recovery of a precious stolen child, stopping a serial rapist or murderer, or providing justice for the family who has lost a loved one to homicide. Karen's expertise as a facial identification specialist derives from nearly thirty years in the trenches working on criminal cases in Texas and around the world. Credited with coining the term "forensic art" in the early 1980s, her cases have involved a wide variety of demands. Her innovative techniques have resulted in repeated successful identifications of both violent offenders and their victims, making her an internationally sought-after practitioner. Karen continues to generate creative solutions for today's forensic art challenges in law enforcement, as well as for other specialized projects related to the human face in a variety of disciplines.
Forensic art may be defined as portrait art minus a tangible subject.
- Dr. Robert M. George, Anatomist
identifying the living
Karen has in-depth expertise in various methods for locating and identifying living individuals through forensic art. Producing accurate and useful Composite Images is a deceptively complex and experience-based function. Karen has conducted thousands of victim/witness interviews, gaining valuable insight into memory function. Understanding the subtle dynamics of memory retrieval is critical to success. Her grasp of cranio-facial anatomy comes into play in multiple aspects of forensic facial identification. Knowledge of the processes of facial growth is required to project the possible appearance of children missing over a period of years in the form of Child Age Progressions. As growth ceases, facial aging begins through a somewhat predictable series of changes. Adult Age Progressions can offer updates of the faces of fugitives or long-term missing adults. Karen also does Assessment, Comparison and Alteration of Facial Images for use in a variety of fields and case scenarios.
identifying the dead
Various forensic art procedures aid with the rather unpleasant but necessary and important task of identifying human physical remains. Postmortem Images are produced to help identify deceased persons using crime scene or morgue photos. In cases of semi-skeletal or skeletal remains, either drawings or sculptures can be used to approximate and recreate the appearance of a person in life based on the skull. In the mid-1980s Karen pioneered the method of 2-D Facial Reconstruction. She has taught the technique to hundreds of others who have applied it successfully to their own cases. Karen does 3-D Facial Reconstruction in the tradition of her mentor, Betty Pat. Gatliff. In her textbook, Forensic Art and Illustration, Karen devotes individual chapters to each of these three methods for identifying the dead. She taught these techniques for over twenty years at the FBI academy. She currently shares her expertise in workshops she teaches at the prestigious Forensic Anthropology Center at Texas State University (FACTS).
forensic art commissions
For forensic art commissions, each case must be specifically discussed with Karen to receive a price quote. Case/photo reviews and price quotes are provided at no charge. To commission possible forensic artwork, contact Karen's studio, Facial Images.
COST
Forensic Art prices start at $2,000
Composite Images:
Done in conjunction with witness interviews.
If travel is involved, expenses incurred would be in addition to the forensic art fee.
Child Age Progressions:
Done only on active criminal investigations.
Adult Age Progressions:
Done in fugitive or missing person cases.
Postmortem Images:
Done in unidentified deceased cases.
2-D or 3-D Facial Reconstructions:
Done in forensic or historical cases.
The skull must be assessed to determine the condition and suitability for the techniques.
Bones make good witnesses. Although they speak softly, they never lie and they never forget.
- Dr. Clyde Snow, Anthropologist-
![Karen T Taylor William Bradford Bishop Jr Sculpture]()
William B. Bishop, Jr.
In March, 1976, US State Department employee William Bradford Bishop, Jr. brutally bludgeoned to death his mother, his wife and his three sons in Bethesda, Maryland…all because he wanted his freedom. In 2014, the FBI in Washington, D.C requested that Karen produce a sculpted bust of this family annihilator. Her age progression sculpture incorporated both age and expression. The many officials involved with this case still have hope for more information to solve this mystery.
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![Karen T Taylor Valley Center Jane Joe]()
Valley Center Jane Doe
In 2002, Karen did a 2D facial reconstruction on a very fragmentary skull found in 1999 in a remote avocado grove in San Diego, California. More than half of the facial skull was missing due to injuries caused as she was murdered. Several years later, someone at the Doe Network made a potential connection between the unidentified skeletal body and a missing young woman from Redlands, California.
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![Karen T Taylor Chicago Jane Doe Identification Facial Reconstruction]()
Chicago Jane Doe
Karen’s old friend, the consummate forensic anthropologist Dr. Clyde Snow, first approached her with a request to work on this case. A young woman’s decomposing body had been stuffed inside a cardboard box and dumped in an alley. Both drawn and sculpted reconstructions were done. Partnered with the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office, the Chicago Police Department, and America's Most Wanted, they were able to get this unfortunate murdered girl identified.
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![Karen T Taylor Dean Phillips]()
Paul Wesley Taylor
The elderly owner of a laundromat is found murdered and dumped on Christmas Day. Investigators had no leads until very grainy security footage was located. Video enhancement was impossible, so they sought Karen’s help to create a clearer drawing from the blurry image. In a very early “remote composite drawing”, a witness also helped, using long-distance collaboration with the forensic artist to bring justice for the grieving widow.
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![Karen T Taylor Daniel Lee Corwin]()
Daniel Lee Corwin
In 1988, Daniel Lee Corwin abducted a college student at Texas A&M University. She was bound, beaten, raped, and stabbed several times before being tied upright to a tree. He then slit her throat. The brave victim pretended to be dead, fooling Corwin and allowing her to eventually escape.
The girl’s throat was cut so deeply that she could not speak. Through written notes and lip reading, Karen was able to develop a composite sketch.
