Joel Shapiro: Untitled

Joel Shapiro: Untitled

On view through September 2026

Joel Shapiro was one of the most influential sculptors of his generation, renowned for fusing formal abstraction with a profound sense of human presence. Born in New York City in 1941, he earned both his B.A. and M.A. from New York University and began exhibiting in the late 1960s. Over the ensuing decades, Shapiro developed a singular sculptural vocabulary defined by balance, tension, and spatial dynamism. His work played a pivotal role in shaping the post-minimalist movement, and he remained a vital force in contemporary sculpture throughout his career.

In Untitled (2002), Shapiro’s mastery of spatial composition is on full display. Cast in aluminum and painted a uniform tone, the sculpture’s angular forms appear to lean, stretch, or hover—never static, always in motion. Though firmly abstract, the work evokes the human body in fragments: a gesture, a twist, a fleeting balance. As viewers move around the work, its shifting geometry reveals a range of perceptual and emotional possibilities, from playful to precarious.

Shapiro’s work has been exhibited in leading institutions around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Tate Modern. His sculptures are held in numerous public and private collections and are celebrated for their capacity to speak across time, place, and form.

Special thanks to Hugh and Betsy O'Hara for their generous support of this installation.