David Shapiro

Artist David Shapiro

(1944-2014)
David Shapiro was a Brooklyn born New York abstract artist whose works are quiet, meditative pieces created solely using form, color and texture.

A practicing Buddhist, Shapiro incorporated Eastern symbols and patterns such as lines, waves, spirals, circles and flames into his work. He worked in a variety of media, including paintings, drawings and prints. He often added materials such as pumice, metal filings, marble dust and graphite into his works to enhance the sense of texture he so appreciated. He almost always worked in a series.

Shapiro received his BFA from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and his MFA from Indiana University. He taught at Barnard College in NY and Parsons School of Design in N.Y. His work has been exhibited internationally, and is in numerous museum collections including the Guggenheim and Museum of Modern Art in NY, The Brooklyn Museum, The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Smithsonian Museum of American Art in DC.


Art on Campus


Forest for the Trees by David Shapiro

Forest from the Trees

Year: 1986
Medium: Acrylic on Canvas
Location: John Gray Center, Rudy Williams bldg, suite 122.

Gift of Rob Clark and Jerry Thacker.

In this seemingly simplistic painting, the artist shows his expertise at managing a balanced composition by use of line and color.  The use of horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines draw the viewer’s eye to the vibrant red center of the canvas.