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The Studio at 10 am
Painting by Arye Shapiro $450.00
Dimensions: 11"W x 14"H x 3/4"D
Material: Oil on canvas board Date: 2022
TNYO: Hello Arye (pronounced (Ar - ee-ay) It is our great pleasure to have the opportunity to feature your artwork and speak with you.
In our phone conversation, I realized that the work you are creating is delicate, sensitive, and crafted with a great sense of deep thought and skill. For how long have you been painting and creating art?
Arye Shapiro: I’ve been creating figurative art for about 25 years. I got serious about drawing and sculpting from life in 1998. I’ve been painting the figure in oil since 2012.
TNYO: Where are you from Arye?
Arye Shapiro: I was born and raised in New York City. I’ve lived in Austin, Texas for nearly 30 years.
TNYO: Your choice of subject matter is the human form. Have you worked with other ideas or compositions?
In our phone conversation, I realized that the work you are creating is delicate, sensitive, and crafted with a great sense of deep thought and skill. For how long have you been painting and creating art?
Arye Shapiro: I’ve been creating figurative art for about 25 years. I got serious about drawing and sculpting from life in 1998. I’ve been painting the figure in oil since 2012.
TNYO: Where are you from Arye?
Arye Shapiro: I was born and raised in New York City. I’ve lived in Austin, Texas for nearly 30 years.
TNYO: Your choice of subject matter is the human form. Have you worked with other ideas or compositions?
Arye Shapiro: I’ve worked with other ideas and compositions in course projects. Also, I
went through a period of creating abstract bas - relief sculpture from wood scraps, similar
to those of Hans Arp and Louise Nevelson. Eventually I returned to sculpting the human
figure and, then, painting the figure in acrylic and oil. When my models pose with
personal objects, I get to paint those objects as well.
TNYO: Where are you currently creating art Arye?
Arye Shapiro: I now paint from life near a large north-facing window in my studio at the
trendy Tyndall condominiums, near the French Legation, in Austin, Texas. The studio is
still new to me, having recently moved from a studio I built in Austin’s Travis Heights in
2005.
TNYO: Can you tell us about your career as a physicist?
Arye Shapiro: I earned my Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Arizona in 1989. I
worked for 10 years in the semiconductor industry for IBM, Sematech, and Advanced
Micro Devices. My area of expertise was advanced defect detection and analysis on
product wafers, which was extremely important for product yield.
In 1999 I was laid off, which helped me decide to make art my primary career. I consulted for the
semiconductor industry for a few years after that. I taught introductory physics as an
adjunct professor for 6 years at Austin Community College. I’ve been tutoring physics
and math as a freelancer for the past 15 years.
TNYO: Does your work as a physicist incorporate itself into your art?
Arye Shapiro: Not really. There’s a slight overlap in that I’m fascinated by the creation
and perception of form, value, and color, as well as by the mystery of color mixing.
These topics are about the physiology and psychology involved in perceiving visual art.
Also, I’m curious about the properties of paint and the use of optical technology in
producing art.
The personality that induced me to focus on solving challenging problems
in math and physics is the same personality that causes me to seek challenges in
making figurative art. I like exercising both left brain and right brain, but I have more fun
doing figure painting than figuring out physics homework problems.
went through a period of creating abstract bas - relief sculpture from wood scraps, similar
to those of Hans Arp and Louise Nevelson. Eventually I returned to sculpting the human
figure and, then, painting the figure in acrylic and oil. When my models pose with
personal objects, I get to paint those objects as well.
TNYO: Where are you currently creating art Arye?
Arye Shapiro: I now paint from life near a large north-facing window in my studio at the
trendy Tyndall condominiums, near the French Legation, in Austin, Texas. The studio is
still new to me, having recently moved from a studio I built in Austin’s Travis Heights in
2005.
TNYO: Can you tell us about your career as a physicist?
Arye Shapiro: I earned my Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Arizona in 1989. I
worked for 10 years in the semiconductor industry for IBM, Sematech, and Advanced
Micro Devices. My area of expertise was advanced defect detection and analysis on
product wafers, which was extremely important for product yield.
In 1999 I was laid off, which helped me decide to make art my primary career. I consulted for the
semiconductor industry for a few years after that. I taught introductory physics as an
adjunct professor for 6 years at Austin Community College. I’ve been tutoring physics
and math as a freelancer for the past 15 years.
TNYO: Does your work as a physicist incorporate itself into your art?
Arye Shapiro: Not really. There’s a slight overlap in that I’m fascinated by the creation
and perception of form, value, and color, as well as by the mystery of color mixing.
These topics are about the physiology and psychology involved in perceiving visual art.
Also, I’m curious about the properties of paint and the use of optical technology in
producing art.
The personality that induced me to focus on solving challenging problems
in math and physics is the same personality that causes me to seek challenges in
making figurative art. I like exercising both left brain and right brain, but I have more fun
doing figure painting than figuring out physics homework problems.
Resurrection Crucifix
Sculpture by Arye Shapiro
$3,600.00
Dimensions: 15"H x 5½"W x 2¾"D
Material: Bronze on black walnut cross
TNYO: Have you been painting and drawing since childhood?
Arye Shapiro: While I began to draw and paint as a child, there was a long hiatus. I
picked up art again as an adult in my twenties. Raised in Manhattan, the son of a
doctor, I was influenced by a wide range of art in the collections of the world’s greatest
museums. I frequently visited the Metropolitan, MOMA, and the Whitney.
My motherntook me to Europe three times, and we saw a great deal of Renaissance art in
museums in Florence and Rome. Later, as an adult, I visited the Louvre in Paris and the
Vatican and Uffizi in Italy, and my wife and I did a sculpture tour in Pietrasanta.
TNYO: When working with your models how important is lighting, the mood in the
studio, and creating of a pose? Is there anything that you do to help create the
atmosphere or the feeling the model is experiencing internally?
Arye Shapiro: These are all very important elements. For the past decade, I have
experimented with single and dual incandescent, fluorescent, and LED light sources
and colored filters, but I currently prefer natural light. I also use a variety of contrasting
foreground and background colors and patterns.
I choose appropriate music and
sometimes ask the model to slightly accentuate parts of the pose. Of course, the
physical and psychological comfort of the model is paramount. I spend a lot of time
experimenting with various views to achieve compelling compositions.
TNYO: In what mediums do you work and do you stretch your own canvas?
Arye Shapiro: I paint in oil. I do not stretch my own canvases. I buy them in various
sizes and aspect ratios from art supply stores.
As a physics grad student in Tucson, I started throwing ceramic pots and honed that
skill at the Garrison Art Center in New York’s Hudson Valley. In Austin, Texas, one
class in figurative sculpture at the Elizabeth Ney Sculpture Conservatory changed
everything. I also studied sculpture at Austin Community College, I took master classes
in Loveland, Colorado from Tuck Langland and Eugene Daub, and I taught sculpture at
the Austin Sculpture Academy for over a year.
TNYO: What are your three favorite things in life Arye?
Arye Shapiro: Making figurative art (of course), enjoying my wife's amazing cooking,
and petting our 2 cats.
TNYO: Can you pick a favorite song to which you might listen when painting?
Arye Shapiro: Anything by Miles Davis. I listen to a jazz station, KMHD in Portland Oregon.
Arye Shapiro: While I began to draw and paint as a child, there was a long hiatus. I
picked up art again as an adult in my twenties. Raised in Manhattan, the son of a
doctor, I was influenced by a wide range of art in the collections of the world’s greatest
museums. I frequently visited the Metropolitan, MOMA, and the Whitney.
My motherntook me to Europe three times, and we saw a great deal of Renaissance art in
museums in Florence and Rome. Later, as an adult, I visited the Louvre in Paris and the
Vatican and Uffizi in Italy, and my wife and I did a sculpture tour in Pietrasanta.
TNYO: When working with your models how important is lighting, the mood in the
studio, and creating of a pose? Is there anything that you do to help create the
atmosphere or the feeling the model is experiencing internally?
Arye Shapiro: These are all very important elements. For the past decade, I have
experimented with single and dual incandescent, fluorescent, and LED light sources
and colored filters, but I currently prefer natural light. I also use a variety of contrasting
foreground and background colors and patterns.
I choose appropriate music and
sometimes ask the model to slightly accentuate parts of the pose. Of course, the
physical and psychological comfort of the model is paramount. I spend a lot of time
experimenting with various views to achieve compelling compositions.
TNYO: In what mediums do you work and do you stretch your own canvas?
Arye Shapiro: I paint in oil. I do not stretch my own canvases. I buy them in various
sizes and aspect ratios from art supply stores.
As a physics grad student in Tucson, I started throwing ceramic pots and honed that
skill at the Garrison Art Center in New York’s Hudson Valley. In Austin, Texas, one
class in figurative sculpture at the Elizabeth Ney Sculpture Conservatory changed
everything. I also studied sculpture at Austin Community College, I took master classes
in Loveland, Colorado from Tuck Langland and Eugene Daub, and I taught sculpture at
the Austin Sculpture Academy for over a year.
TNYO: What are your three favorite things in life Arye?
Arye Shapiro: Making figurative art (of course), enjoying my wife's amazing cooking,
and petting our 2 cats.
TNYO: Can you pick a favorite song to which you might listen when painting?
Arye Shapiro: Anything by Miles Davis. I listen to a jazz station, KMHD in Portland Oregon.
TNYO: What is it about the human body that inspires you to paint?
Arye Shapiro: I’m awed by the physical construction of the human body, regardless of
the model’s age and shape. I also seek to express personality and attitude, without the
construction or artifice of fashion.
TNYO: What are your current influences?
Arye Shapiro: I have studied and been influenced by the contemporary precision of
work by Philip Pearlstein, the emotional intensity of art by Lucien Freud, and the
psychological clarity of the paintings of Alice Neel.
TNYO: Are you represented by any galleries or organizations?
Arye Shapiro: Yes, the Stravitz Gallery in Virginia Beach represents me. After
participating in many group shows sponsored by the Austin Visual Arts Association, in
2022, I had my first solo show of 26 oil paintings at Artworks on Sixth Street in Austin.
TNYO: How do you promote your artwork?
Arye Shapiro: My wife, Karen Kreps of Net Ingenuity, built my website. I post images
of my work on Instagram, and also display work on figurativeartist.org. I have art
business cards, and have given talks and demonstrations to LAMP at the University of
Texas and at St. Edwards University in Austin, Texas. Articles have been written about
my work and I have been interviewed by local Austin journalists.
TNYO: Have you ever taken a commission?
Arye Shapiro: I have completed 27 sculpture commissions and one recent painting
commission. Whereas I am not religious, I’ve done commissions of the Biblical story of
Job, a processional crucifix for a large Catholic church, and a tile mosaic for a
Franciscan friary. I took three years to sculpt a bust of a precocious seven-year-old
who could not sit still. In one commission, a couple posed weekly for 7 months while the
client’s body changed due to pregnancy.
Another commission led me to surreptitiously photograph 3 leaders of a trade union of giant crane operators, and sculpt and cast their
busts in bronze as a surprise for their new union hall. My favorite commission was an
outdoor wire sculpture of three dancers. I also enjoyed creating bas - relief sculptures of parents
and children.
TNYO: Where would you like your art to go next?
Arye Shapiro: I’m currently seeking additional shows and representation.
I’d like to explore multiple figures in different environments and work on larger canvases.
Arye Shapiro: I’m awed by the physical construction of the human body, regardless of
the model’s age and shape. I also seek to express personality and attitude, without the
construction or artifice of fashion.
TNYO: What are your current influences?
Arye Shapiro: I have studied and been influenced by the contemporary precision of
work by Philip Pearlstein, the emotional intensity of art by Lucien Freud, and the
psychological clarity of the paintings of Alice Neel.
TNYO: Are you represented by any galleries or organizations?
Arye Shapiro: Yes, the Stravitz Gallery in Virginia Beach represents me. After
participating in many group shows sponsored by the Austin Visual Arts Association, in
2022, I had my first solo show of 26 oil paintings at Artworks on Sixth Street in Austin.
TNYO: How do you promote your artwork?
Arye Shapiro: My wife, Karen Kreps of Net Ingenuity, built my website. I post images
of my work on Instagram, and also display work on figurativeartist.org. I have art
business cards, and have given talks and demonstrations to LAMP at the University of
Texas and at St. Edwards University in Austin, Texas. Articles have been written about
my work and I have been interviewed by local Austin journalists.
TNYO: Have you ever taken a commission?
Arye Shapiro: I have completed 27 sculpture commissions and one recent painting
commission. Whereas I am not religious, I’ve done commissions of the Biblical story of
Job, a processional crucifix for a large Catholic church, and a tile mosaic for a
Franciscan friary. I took three years to sculpt a bust of a precocious seven-year-old
who could not sit still. In one commission, a couple posed weekly for 7 months while the
client’s body changed due to pregnancy.
Another commission led me to surreptitiously photograph 3 leaders of a trade union of giant crane operators, and sculpt and cast their
busts in bronze as a surprise for their new union hall. My favorite commission was an
outdoor wire sculpture of three dancers. I also enjoyed creating bas - relief sculptures of parents
and children.
TNYO: Where would you like your art to go next?
Arye Shapiro: I’m currently seeking additional shows and representation.
I’d like to explore multiple figures in different environments and work on larger canvases.
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St. Francis Following St. Michael (SOLD)
Dimensions: 24"W x 30"H x 1⅜"D
Material: Ceramic tile and grout
Date: 2009
This mosaic was a commission by the San Miguel Friary. It is on the exterior of their building at 10040 Espada Road
San Antonio, TX 78214. The mosaic was fabricated in the studio of Arye’s friend, Augusto Brocca in Austin, TX. His technical expertise was instrumental in the cutting and installation of the tiles.
Dimensions: 24"W x 30"H x 1⅜"D
Material: Ceramic tile and grout
Date: 2009
This mosaic was a commission by the San Miguel Friary. It is on the exterior of their building at 10040 Espada Road
San Antonio, TX 78214. The mosaic was fabricated in the studio of Arye’s friend, Augusto Brocca in Austin, TX. His technical expertise was instrumental in the cutting and installation of the tiles.
