Avary Taylor

Avary Taylor is a postdoctoral associate in the Technical Studies Lab with a project that uses scientific imaging, micro-analysis techniques, and scholarly research to develop a color schema of Yale University Art Gallery’s Assyrian bas-reliefs. The reliefs will be displayed in the Yale Peabody Museum with light projections to simulate their original colorful appearance. In collaboration with the Yale Babylonian Collection, Avary is also developing educational materials on polychrome and pigment analysis for the museum.

Avary is an art historian specializing in the arts of the ancient Middle East. His research focuses on relationships between humans and nonhuman affective forces during the Middle and Late Assyrian periods, with additional interests in environmental humanities, queer studies, and reception history. Avary is also involved in several archaeological projects, chiefly the Lagash Archaeological Project (University of Pennsylvania). He earned his PhD from Johns Hopkins University and AB from Bryn Mawr College.