Ralph Taylor is the coolest person I met this week, and you can meet him, too! He leaves the door to his workshop, Caribbean Mardi Gras Productions, open to the public during business hours. Anyone can wander into his shop off East Lafayette and discover the magic within.
An eight-foot tall, golden puppet greets visitors at the door of the white and red brick building. Wind around the corner and you are welcomed further by feather headpieces, bronze masks, and steel drums of various shapes and sizes. Glittery skeletons dangle from the ceiling and in the middle of all of these marvelous things smiles Mr. Taylor, a round-bellied, bright eyed man of about 5’10, dwarfed by the creations around him.
When I meet him, he wears a measuring tape around his neck and asks me to guess his age. He chuckles at the gross underestimate and proudly says he is 75. A native of Trinidad and Tobago, Mr. Taylor moved to Detroit over 40 years ago as a welder and has become an ambassador of Carnival culture in the city. He creates elaborate, wearable works of art in true Carnival, the mother festival of Mardi Gras, fashion: lights, colors, and grandiose scale.
When not bringing these mesmerizing creations to life, Mr. Taylor teaches steel-drum classes and gives grandfatherly advice. “Be true to yourself,” and “Rules are made to be broken,” he says with a childish grin. Meet your newest hero, Ralph Taylor, at 6911 E. Lafayette.