Nat Mayer Shapiro

Nathan Mayer Shapiro (1919 – 2005) was an American visual artist. He is known for his paintings on canvas and paper, as well as monumental sculptures. He was active in Chicago (USA), Paris (France) and the New York area (USA). Nat Mayer Shapiro's work and life are the subject of the book Nat Mayer Shapiro, Rigor and Joy.

Artwork

Nat Mayer Shapiro is best known for his complex paintings on paper and canvas that may incorporate structural and whimsical imagery among areas of pure or constructed abstraction. He did not adhere to any particular school or art movement, remaining an individualist throughout his life. He was much inspired by his travels, particularly Greek and Byzantine churches, the mosaics of Ravenna, and the landscapes of Morocco, and by his Jewish culture.

His work is abundant (over 900 paintings, drawings, assemblages and sculptures) and highly diverse, ranging from the figurative to pure abstraction and Op art. With its dynamic mix of humorous vignettes, biblical scenes, rigorous geometric compositions, whimsical anthropomorphic sculptures, dancing kites, and visions of an unfathomable cosmos, his oeuvre is in turn serious, mischievous and ethereal. Shapiro asserts his style and personality by combining dynamics and clarity of composition, line and depth, and a subtle modulation of the chromatic scale. His work expresses an independent spirit, infinite curiosity and an abiding interest in humanity. There is a constant search for line, color, depth and movement, between lightness and rigor, with a poetic and mocking sense of deadpan humor. a solitary, undulating wall section, appears as an abstract black void, decorated with organic white lines and colored shapes ranging from rudimentary squares to recognizable human eyes. In the artist's own words: “By the design and undulation on this sculpture, I have tried to show man in constant movement through the centuries, tying with a white line his most primitive expression (the square) to that of his intelligence, his intellectualism (the eye), by means of a white line, the whole calculated to vaguely resemble a face.” artists' building in Westchester County. He was instrumental in locating, setting up and launching Westchester's oldest fine arts cooperative gallery in Dobbs Ferry, the Upstream Gallery of which he was president from 1995 to 2002. He died in New York City.

Collections

Nat Mayer Shapiro's works of art can be found in numerous private art collections throughout the world, and are included in the permanent art collections of the Ministry of Culture (Fonds National d'Art Contemporain—FNAC ), Paris, France, The Art Gallery of the Queensborough Community College, Queens, NY and Pfizer Inc. New York City. He is represented by Galerie Saphir in Paris and Dinard, France.