Sculptor who works in wood, steel, stone, glass & integrates found objects.
About the Artist
Born in Manhattan to a set of unique and quirky Jewish parents, one an artist, the other the son of refugees fleeing the pogroms of Russia, I came to exist in a very specific time period fraught with both struggle and discovery.
My art life began as a child in the ceramics studio and gardens of my mother. She was constantly exploring the creative potential of objects, and I was surrounded by her naturally occurring forms and the beauty of nature. From a very young age, I began expressing myself through art, and this calling came from within. It was the vehicle through which I related to the world.
Growing up in New York, I was drawn to taking things apart and putting them back together in ways that felt more useful, more meaningful, or just more interesting to me. This resulted in sculptures made from natural materials, and assemblages of found objects.
I was also a breakdancer and immersed myself in the New York City hip hop culture of the 1980’s. Pushing my body, first through dance and then later exploring my own strength and resiliency through competitive gymnastics, I came to value a form of self-expression that was very physical and tactile. I looked at life through a lens oriented to explore physical relationships and the ways in which the mind and emotions intersect with the physical world.
Perhaps it’s not surprising, then, that my influences are varied. While studying at the University of Pittsburgh, a studio art professor, Andy Mauery, introduced me to Merce Cunningham. Cunningham was a master choreographer who was interested in the expressive potential of form itself. From a sculptural perspective, I take great inspiration from the work of Noguchi, Brancusi and Calder. Closer to home, I’m fortunate to call Thaddeus Mosley a friend and teacher.
Through my sculpture, I am drawn to explore the expressive potential of materials as they interact with each other. No matter the material—it could be wood, stone, steel, or concrete—my actions lead the form to evolve in a way that fulfills my vision, emotions and what that form itself seemingly needs to express. It is an expression that is birthed from the form itself. It is via my process of making art that I gain a better understanding of myself and the world I live in. I am constantly searching for things that are real in a society where I believe so much to be artificial. This process and the relationship that I forge each time I create a new piece of art is, for me, as real as it gets.
My sculptures are visual, tactile tools that serve almost as guideposts, enabling me to discover and keep in touch with how I am feeling and reacting to my dynamic environment. Making my art, I sometimes feel like a mechanical engineer invested in solving problems of weight and space, and constantly experimenting with my materials’ interactive potential.
At a time when our political and cultural climate feels on edge, my physical exploration through sculpture has been especially vital to me. Almost as an attempt at self-preservation, I am compelled to continue to dedicate myself to this important work of carving, feeling, and being.
In the end, what I seek to create is beyond labels, as the true expression must be experienced with the senses to be fully understood. I liken this to the practice of yoga. We can talk about breathing and moving, and we can philosophize about being in the present moment, however the experience of breath, the feeling of movement, and the immediacy of the moment is right here and right now. This is the gift I wish to share through my art.
Shadows from the Pale
Camouflage
Given to Nurture
Manipulating Matter
The Forest Inside
Molten Memories
Expressive Forms
Personalities
Window Pain
Spirit Sense
Events
Current
Expressive Forms
Expressive Forms
Zynka Gallery & The Andy Warhol Museum
Nov 16, 2019 - Dec 29, 2019
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Expressive Forms
Expressive Forms
Expressive Forms
Mendelson Galleries
June 2013
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The Forest Inside
Expressive Forms
The Forest Inside
Pittsburgh Center for the Arts
Nov 14, 2008 - Jan 25, 2009
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Specimens
The Garden Inside, Small Wood Sculpture
The Forest Inside
Pittsburgh Center for the Arts
Nov 14, 2008 - Jan 25, 2009
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Inside Out
The Garden Inside, Small Wood Sculpture
The Garden Inside, Small Wood Sculpture
Mendelson Galleries
April 2006
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The Garden Inside, Small Wood Sculpture
The Garden Inside, Small Wood Sculpture
The Garden Inside, Small Wood Sculpture
Pittsburgh Filmmakers
January 2006
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Organic Matter
Organic Matter
Organic Matter
Garfield Artworks
March 2003
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Contact
Jonathan Shapiro
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