Paul Shapiro

Paul Shapiro was Born in Boston, Ma  in 1939, attended Winthrop High School and in 1957 went on to study biology at Northeastern University. In 1958 he discovers painting and leaves Northeastern and enrolls in the night school at the Boston Museum School to study drawing. Moves to New York in 1959 and attends The Art Student's League. Moves back to Boston in 1960 to attend The Boston Museum School on a partial scholarship. Studies there for two and one half years and leaves because he was the only student in the school that was interested in abstract paintings. Around this time he began a friendship with the mystic artist Hermon Di Giavanno who he considers his real teacher. He works mainly with pastel during this period exploring the spiritual in art which was very prevalent in Boston at this time. In 1965 he puts together a blues rock band called the Hallucinations which he played lead guitar in. Two members of this band joined The Jay Geils band after the demise of the Hallucinations which lasted 3 years. In 1970 Shapiro goes to Paris and Crete where he starts painting abstracted landscapes. In 1971 moves to New Hampshire where he becomes very involved with modernistic and symbolic landscape painting. Returns to Boston in 1976 and hears about the landscape of New Mexico from his friend David Barbero. Makes three summer painting trips to New Mexico in 1976, 1978 &1980 with Barbero eventually moving to Santa Fe in 1982 to be in the midst  of the  landscape which was very connected to what Shapiro was painting. Shapiro and Barbero's paintings became a big influence on landscape painting in the southwest because of the use of color and abstracted forms. In 1990  Shapiro abandons the landscape and returns to totally abstract paintings. His work goes through a few different periods and in 2004 he arrives upon a totally original vision based on his interest in quantum physics, energy systems before they materialize into matter, how the mico and macro worlds recapitualate each other from sub-cellular structures to galaxies asking the question "what is real and what is abstract in painting ?" and how to express the mysteries of subtle and invisible worlds. In 2010 Shapiro was given a life time achievment award in the arts by New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson.

 Shapiro is also more involved than ever in his musical pursuits playing slide guitar and harmonicas. playing blues and creating his versions of Japanese shakuhachi music and mideastern  music on the harmonica and Indian, mideastern and North African influensed music on slide guitar.