9 Questions with Elinor Shapiro

Elinor Shapiro grew up in Los Angeles, California. She works in various mediums, but her current body of work is mixed media, including charcoal, pastels, ink, and acrylic paint. Elinor majored in art at California State University, Northridge. After studying for a time in California, she relocated to Orquevaux, France, where she works as Associate Director at the artist Residency Chateau Orquevaux.

Elinor's practice in the studio is wild and impulsive. She works on top of large canvas pieces, unrolled on the floor, and listen to fast-paced music. The canvas itself is worthless; there is no sentimentality, no delicacy. Elinor walks across the fabric with a piece of charcoal, slashing and scribbling. Her works are mixed media using charcoal, chalk pastel, acrylic paint, and oil paint. The figures in Elinor Shapiro's work are raw and disconnected. The combined mediums give her the ability to render them with detail and disintegrate them with a line. As a code, there are words and phrases layered into the paint. These words echo conversations and thoughts; their meanings are not meant to be known but felt.

www.elinorshapiro.com | @elinorshapiro

How would you define yourself as an artist?

Passionate. I make art because I need to.

What kind of education or training helped you develop your skillset?

My time working at Chateau Orquevaux Artist Residency has had a profound effect on my art. Moving to France has changed my work in ways I could not have predicted. Every month I get to meet a whole new group of artists; I can share experiences, techniques, and conversations with them. I am exposed to artists from all over the world, creating all different types of art. This is a freedom I did not experience in school.

In some of your paintings, we can find codes, signs, and in some others, we find words and phrases layered into the paint. Please, tell our readers about the symbology of your paintings.

Often when I start a painting, I have words stuck in my brain. The words can come from anywhere and everywhere; they are often snipped from conversations or thoughts; sometimes, the words just feel right. If these words are strong enough in my mind, they make it onto the canvas. Words have a unique way of describing things, different from drawing them. Combining the two worlds adds another way to explore and interpret my internal dialogues. 

Sometimes my words are visible in the final result, and sometimes they are completely hidden, or somewhere in between. My intention for these words does not need to be understood by the viewer. Every individual interpretation of the meaning is valid. There is art in words.

The body parts of your figures are often exaggerated and express a deep feeling of loneliness, sadness, and overthinking. Why do you use this visual language?

Pain and sadness have a way of lingering with us more than kindness and happiness does. Pain follows you. There are more puzzles in the negatives. My art is a way for me to work out how I feel, and these negatives are what I am usually working through. Subconsciously what I feel distorts the figures. Sometimes more emphasis on eyes, or hands, or the form of the spine. This is to capture a physical interpretation of the emotional causes. Its sort of like the figures in my work are embodiments of emotion and conflict.

What experience of your life would you say that is reflected in your works of art?

I would not say these words come from one single experience, but many and all. Sometimes there is a specific interaction I have had that initially inspires the piece. Each piece becomes a collage of experiences. My pieces come from very personal moments and feelings.

Do you have a role model that you've drawn inspiration from when making your art?

I grew up in art museums; I greet many of the masters like old friends. They have all made their way into my subconscious like a round table of artists. Malevich and his dancing shapes, Modigliani with his subdued portraits, Carravaggio with his animated scenes, Picasso, Basquiat, Monet, Kandinsky, and the list goes on. They are all in my mind and my heart, helping me as I create.

What do you wish you knew about mixed media before you got started?

I have never had any formal training with oil paints, so I have had to learn on the spot with them. I wish I had someone to guide me through learning about glazes and varnishes. You can learn these things on your own, but it's much easier to have someone helping you through the more scientific side of the painting, especially since I am mixing a lot of things that traditionally don't go together, like chalk pastels and oils. 

Any shows, galleries, or publications where our readers can find your work?

Van Rensburg Galleries represent me, so my work is available HERE. Also, on my website, and my Instagram.

What's the coolest art tip you've ever received?

"Break the white of the canvas" It doesn't matter how, a line, an ink splat, and a smudge will make the canvas less precious. It will make it more approachable.