DEBRA COOK SHAPIRO
Location:
San Francisco, CA, USA
ARTIST BIO
Debra Cook Shapiro is a San Francisco-based painter who has pursued her passion for art since moving to California. Originally from St. Louis, she studied at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and continued her education at the Istituto de L'Arte et Ristauro and Istituto Lorenzo di Medici in Florence, Italy, before furthering her studies at the San Francisco Art Institute and UC Berkeley’s Post-Baccalaureate painting program.
Shapiro’s work has been featured in solo and group exhibitions at galleries, wineries, and private residences in Northern California, including the French Consul's residence in San Francisco, Summerhouse in Mill Valley, Ice House Gallery in Petaluma, Mirus Gallery, Arc Gallery, 111 Minna Gallery, Abend Gallery in Denver, and Teravarna Gallery in Irvine. She has exhibited at the Superfine Art Fair in San Francisco (2023, 2025) and the LA Art Fair (2024).
Her work has appeared in Women United Art Magazine, Create Magazine, Art Seen Magazine, New Visionary Magazine, Arts to Hearts Magazine, and Artists of the Bay Area by Jen Tough Gallery.
Shapiro was awarded residencies at Chalk Hill Artist Residency (2015) and the European Cultural Academy in Venice, Italy (2023). She began her career in 2005 with commissioned portraits before evolving into figurative work in landscapes. In April 2024, she completed a commissioned portrait for Bay Area philanthropists Barney and Barbro Osher.
In addition to her studio practice, Shapiro teaches private lessons, conducts workshops, and offers one-on-one mentorship.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I'm captivated by the rituals and relationships that shape our lives—how we find meaning in both connection and solitude. My work explores these themes through female figures in landscapes, merging personal memories with historical references to create visual narratives rich with emotion.
Whether through painting or collage, I capture life’s rhythms with a whimsical, Rococo-inspired palette, weaving together moments of celebration, reflection, and transformation.
Inspired by Rococo masters like Tiepolo, Boucher, and Fragonard, I craft playful, elegant compositions where figures and landscapes merge in a sense of festivity and enchantment. My paintings use curving, fluid forms to evoke movement and emotion, while my collages embrace bold, angular shapes and abstract spaces, challenging my own perceptions of form and depth.
Recent works draw from personal milestones—imagery from my own Venetian wedding in 1999, a recent summer birthday celebration of twin sisters set in a labyrinthine Venetian piazza, and sunlit Adriatic coastlines.
These settings symbolize life's twists and turns, the choices we make, and the balance between solitude and connection.
Ultimately, I invite viewers to reflect on their own personal histories and collective rituals—where fluid forms and bold abstractions reveal the evolving story of the moments that define us, offering a quiet celebration of hope, renewal, and beauty.
