Wendy E.

Cullings
History of Art-Theory and Methodology
Professor Diana Gisolfi
December 17, 2008.
Meyer Schapiro (1904-1996): His Life in Brief
Born as Meir Schapiro in Lithuania in 1904, he immigrated to the United States at the age of 3 to
avoid the harassment that Jewish people were often subjected in his home country. Changing his name
mane to Meyer at Ellis Island, Schapiro considered New York City to be his home from this point
forward. From a very early age he expressed a desire to be an artist and as child in Brooklyn he was able
to take sculpture classes at the Hebrew Settlement House. However, Meyer was convinced that he was
not talented enough to pursue a career as an artist and soon turned to academia. He enrolled in
Columbia College at the age of 16, and by 20 had graduated with honors in both art history and
philosophy.
It was at Columbia that Schapiro would help to mold the form of art history as we know it today.
He began lecturing there at the age of 28, before he had even finished his dissertation, and continued
until his retirement in 1973. As a preeminent teacher, Schapiro introduced art history to the core
curriculum before it had been added by the administration. He became assistant professor there in
1936, associate professor in 1946, full professor in 1952 and university professor in 1965. In 1973, he
was named university professor emeritus and went to Columbia once a week to teach the graduate
course Theory and Methods of Investigation in Art.
During his career he also taught at NYU and the New School for Social Research, where his
lectures were often attended by young artists living and working in New York City. In reading about
Schapiro, it becomes obvious that his presence in the New York City art world was monumental. Artist
after artist recount stories of how he helped to shape their young career or to push past blocks they
were experiencing. One such anecdote of this type involves Schapiro convincing the young Willem de
Kooning that his recently completed Woman 1 was not a failure.
Besides his immense and caring role with students and artists, it is the unparalleled intellect of
Meyer Schapiro that is his primary legacy. Friends and colleagues describe in detail his precise memory
and ability to recall and link facts and data about numerous subjects together with ease. Perhaps this is
why the writing of Schapiro is so engaging and educational, without being didactic. He effortlessly
1

weaves together histories of art objects and paintings with their cultural, societal, and historical context.
Never satisfied to specialize in one area of fine art, Schapiro wrote profusely about not only about
Romanesque art in Spain and France or about Illuminated manuscripts in the British Isles, but also about
the merits of Modern Art and the Avant-Garde. Working through a period in art history when the
formalism of Clement Greenberg ruled, the often dissenting voice of Meyer Schapiro was always there
to provide the societal and cultural significance of a work of art.
The many merits and awards that Schapiro has received only confirm his already great legacy.
In 1973 he was given an Award by the Art Dealers Association of America. In 1975 he was given
Columbia Colleges highest award, the Alexander Hamilton Medal for distinguished service and
accomplishment, and in 1978 the Meyer Schapiro Professorship of Art History was established. To
commemorate his 90th birthday, his brother donated $1 million to establish the Meyer Schapiro
Professorship of Modern Art and Theory.
Even with the achievements of a genius, Schapiro always seemed humble. In interviews he
always appeared more interested in research and facts than his own ego. At the beginning of each of his
volumes he profusely thanks his wife, Dr. Lilliam Milgram, who was his librarian, amanuensis, assistant,
and partner. Meyer Schapiro stands today as one of the greatest contributors to the history of art.

Bibliography for Biography of Meyer Schapiro

Meyer Schapiro. C250 Celebrates Columbians Ahead of their Times.
http://c250.columbia.edu/c250_celebrates/remarkable_columbians/meyer_schapiro.html
(accessed December 16, 2008).
Russell, J. Meyer Schapiro, Art Historian and Critic, Dies at 90, New York Times, March 4, 1996,
Obituaries.
Schapiro, Meyer. Oxford Art Online.
http://www.oxfordartonline.com.ezproxy.pratt.edu:2048/subscriber/article/grove/art/T076403
?q=schapiro%2C+meyer&hbutton_search.x=0&hbutton_search.y=0&hbutton_search=search&s
ource=oao_gao&source=oao_t118&source=oao_t234&source=oao_t4&search=quick&pos=1&_
start=1#firsthit. (accessed December 16, 2008).

Key to Books Viewed

PRATT-Pratt Institute Main Library, Brooklyn Campus
NYPL-New York Public Library Humanities Library, 42nd Street, Manhattan
NYPLMM-New York Public Library Mid-Manhattan Branch, 40th Street, Manhattan
JSTOR-Online Database of journal articles accessed through Pratt Librarys E-Reference site.
-Unless noted with one of these designations, works were not seen.
A Note on the Critical Bibliography
Creating a biography to do justice to the immense career of Meyer Schapiro was daunting to say
the least. I began my quest using the online database, Worldcat. While this was an extremely helpful
resource, I found many of the citations to be incomplete or inaccurate. I then attempted to locate
original journal articles within databases such as JSTOR of Art Full-Text, and this did help to answer
many questions that I had. At the very end of the project I discovered the printed version of Schapiros
bibliography, published by his wife Dr. Lillian Milgram in 1995. This proved invaluable in filling in gaps of
information that would otherwise be inaccessible. I decided to include some of her notes about works
that Schapiro had decided to remove his name from and also works that he published under
pseudonyms. Her book was also extremely helpful when determining the reprinting and editioning of
many of Schapiros more prominent texts (such as those on Van Gogh and Gauguin). I have noted with
an asterisk* in my bibliography where I have used text from her bibliography that was otherwise
inaccessible to me. I thought it appropriate to include her text to give a richer and fuller picture of the
works of this superior art historian.
Sources Referenced While Compiling Bibliography
Art-Full Text Database. Offered through H.W. Wilson Co. (Accessed numerous times through Pratt
Librarys E-Reference Page).
JSTOR. Offered by the Mellon Foundation. (Accessed numerous times through Pratt Librarys EReference Page).
Schapiro, Lillian Milgram, compiler. Meyer Schapiro: The Bibliography. New York: George Braziller, 1995.
Worldcat Database. (Accessed numerous times through Pratt Librarys E-Reference Page).

Meyer Schapiro: A Critical Bibliography

1925
On Emanuel Lowrys Rendering of Nature in Early Greek Art (Die Naturwiedergabe in der alteren
Griechischen Kunst; Rome, 1900; London, 1907). The Arts 8 (September 1925): 170-72.
1928
Art in the Contemporary World. In An Introduction to Contemporary Civilization in the West, edited by
John J. Coss, John Fennelly, Joseph B. McGoldrick, and Irving W. Raymond, 271-317. New York:
Columbia University Press, 1928.
1929
The Romanesque Sculpture of Moissac, Parts 1, 2, and 3. Ph.D. dissertation, Columbia University May
1929. Printed in Selected Papers 1 (1977), 131-264. Reprinted as The Sculpture of Moissac (New
York: George Braziller, 1985).
The South Transept Portal of Saint-Sernin in Toulouse. Parnassus 1, no. 3 (1929): 22-23.
1931
Mr. Rosenfeld and Matisse. Letter to The Nation, December 30, 1931, 725.
1932
Matisse and Impressionism. Androcles (Columbia College, New York) 1, no. 1 (February 1932): 21-36.
*The New Architecture Review of exhibition of modern architecture at the Museum of Modern Art,
New York, published under the pseudonym John Kwait (M.S.s meternal grandmothers name).
New Masses, May 1932, 23.
* Engels on Goethe. Excerpts from the translation of an 1847 article, with introduction and comment
by M.S. (anonymous). New Masses, September 1932, 13-14.
*Architecture under Capitalism. A critique of the architectural magazine Shelter published under the
pseudonym John Kwait. New Masses, December 1932, 10-13.
Architects and the Crisis. An Open Letter to the Architects, Draughtsmen, and Technicians of America.
Architects Committee of League of Professional Groups for Foster and Ford. Pamphlet,
unsigned, 1932.

1933
*John Reed Club Art Exhibition. Reviewed under the pseudonym John Kwait. New Masses, February
1933, 23-24.
1934
On Lewis Mumford: Technics and Civilization (New York, 1934). New Masses, July 4, 1934, 25.
Pottery. In Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, 12:280-83. New York: Maxmillan: 1934.
Taste. In Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, 14:523-25. New York: Macmillan, 1934.
1935
Seurat and La Grande Jatte. Columbia Review 17 (November 1935): 9-17.
New Documents in St.-Gilles. Art Bulletin 17, no. 4 (December 1935): 414-31. Reprinted in Selected
Papers I (1977), 328-46. JSTOR
In this article Schapiro sets out to offer evidence of the date of the faade of St.-Gilles. He says
that the date of the monument is important to students of Mediaeval art because it is a central
monument of a proto-renaissance. He discusses some of the previous problems with assigning
the date. Schapiro concludes that the majority of work was done at St.-Gilles between 1135 and
1142, with the earliest styles having been completed in 1129.
Art Education. Art Education Today I (1935): 77-78.
, R. Meyer Riefstahl, and M. Crane. Islamic Art (Selective Bibliography), 1935.
1936
Race, Nationality and Art. Art Front 2 (March 1936): 10-12.
The New Viennese School. Review of Kunstwissenschaftliche Foschungen, vol. 2, edited by Otto Pacht
(Berlin and Frankfurt, 1922), Art Bulletin 18, no. 2 (June 1936):258-66.
Social Bases of Art. American Artists Congress, New York, Proceedings, no. 1 (1936): 31-37.
The Public Use of Art. Art Front 2 (November 1936): 4-6.

1937
Nature of Abstract Art. Marxist Quarterly 1, no. 1 (January-March 1937): 77-98. Reprinted in Selected
Papers II (1978), 185-211.
Further Documents on St.-Gilles. Art Bulletin 19, no. 1 (March 1937): 111-12. Reprinted in Selected
Papers I (1977), 328-46.
1939
From Mozarabic to Romanesque in Silos. Art Bulletin 21, no. 4 (December 1939): 313-74. Reprinted in
Selected Papers I (1977), 28-101. JSTOR
Schapiro describes the emergence of Romanesque art in Spain during the second third of the
eleventh century. He argues that previous explanations have included only forces outside,
mostly the French political influence over Spain at the time. He says that this argument
excludes Spain almost entirely and seeks to reintroduce Spain and contemporary Spanish
culture into the discussion. Using the example of miniature painting in Silos, Schapiro presents a
well developed argument rightfully placing the emergence of Romanesque art there with Spain
itself.
The Sculptures of Souillac. In Mediaeval Studies in Memory of A. Kingsley Porter, ed. W.R.W. Koehler,
359-87. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1939. Reprinted in Selected Papers I (1977), 10230.
1940
Jean Helion. Foreward to Helion-Recent Paintings. Exh. Cat., Gallery Georgette Passedoit, New York,
March 25-April 6, 1940.
The Carolingian Copy of the Calendar of 354. Art Bulletin 22, no. 4 (December 1940): 270-72.
Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979), 143-49. JSTOR
In this short article, Schapiro discusses the argument of Dr. Carl Nordenfalk questioning that the
Calendar belongs to the Eastern Empire, or even to the Orient, as had been defended by
Strzygowski. He does this by questioning the dating of the Calendar by the antiquarian Peiresc.
Schapiro discusses both the copy made from the 354 document that Nordenfalk had for his
research, as well as the Barberini copy that Peiresc used for his original assignment and dating.
Courbet and Popular Imagery: An Essay on Realism and Naivete. Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld
Institute 4, no. 3-4 (1940-41): 164-91. Reprinted in Selected Papers II (1978), 47-85. JSTOR
Schapiro discusses the criticisms often brought against the imagery of Courbet: that it is nave,
stiff, and simple. He debates the idea the Courbet was using naivete to return imagery to the
primitive. In this argument he discusses Courbets simplicity of form, use of colors and rich
pigments, and simplified arrangements. He traces the career of Courbet using his relationship
with Champfleury, discussing their political attitudes and ideas side by side.
6

1941
On Style and Expressiveness. Answer to a letter from Ananda K. Coomaraswamy. Art Bulletin 23, no. 2
(June 1941): 143.
1942
A Note on an Inscription of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. Speculum 17, no. 2 (April 1942):
261-64. JSTOR
Schapiro discusses the debate between Spanish, French, and American Historians about the
date inscribed on a jamb on the Puerta de las Platerias. He believes that the door is dated from
the beginning of the twelfth century but says that the definitive answer of the date could only
be achieved with further contemporary evidence of dating.
Athanasius Kircher. VVV 1 (June 1942): 36-38.
Cains Jaw-Bone That Did the First Murder. Art Bulletin 24, no. 3 (September 1942): 205-12. Reprinted
in Selected Papers III (1979), 249-65. JSTOR
In this paper Schapiro discusses Cains use of an asss jaw-bone to slew Abel. He first sites
instances where the jaw-bone is mentioned in Anglo literature and then foes through the image
of the jaw-bone in art. He mentions examples of Master Bertram in Hamburg as well as a
painting by Jan Van Eyck and then elaborates that these examples must have been derived from
English examples. He concludes that the idea of Cains weapon as a jaw-bone existed because
of common vernacular particular to England.
Answer to Three Questions on Dialectical Materialism. Dyn (Mexico City), no. 2 (1942):49-53.
1943
*Socialism and the Failure of Nerve: An Exchange with Sidney Hook. Published under the pseudonym
David Merian. Partisan Review 10, no. 1 (January 1943): 248-62, and no. 2 (February 1943): 47381.
The Image of the Disappearing Christ, the Ascension in English Art around the Year 1000. Gazette des
Beaux-Arts 23 (March 1943): 135-52. Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979), 266-87.
Film Chronicle: Mission to Moscow. Partisan Review 10, no. 3 (May-June 1943): 275-78.
The Angel with the Ram in Abrahams Sacrifice: A Parallel in Western and Islamic Art. Ars Islamica 10,
no 1-2 (1943); 134-47. Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979), 288-306, 311-17.

1944
The Religious Meaning of the Ruthwell Cross. Art Bulletin 24, no. 4 (December 1944): 232-45.
Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979), 150-76, 186-92. JSTOR
Schapiro questions the dominant theory, set forth by Baldwin Brown, that the Ruthwell Cross
was made to symbolize the triumph of the cross. While the text inscribed on the cross supports
this notion, Schapiro argues that the imagery on the cross itself is in opposition. He concludes
that the cross is based on eremitic conceptions of the churches of the British Isles in the sixth
and seventh centuries, containing mainly Celtic religious content.
The Myth of Oedipus. In The Myth of Oedipus with Six Original Etchings by Kurt Seligmann, 9-18.New
York: Durlacher Bros.-R. Kirk Askew, Jr., 1944.
1945
A Note on Max Webers Politics. Politics 2, no. 2 (February 1945): 44-48. Reprinted in Essays for
Students of Socialism (Melbourne: Workers Literature Bureau, 1945), 29-32.
Muscipula Diaboli, the Symbolism of the Merode Altarpiece. Art Bulletin 27, no. 3 (September 1945):
182-87. Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979), 1-11, 16-18. JSTOR
Schapiro discusses the placement, by the Master of Flemalle, of Joseph in an image dealing with
the Annunciation and also the strange depiction of him crafting a mousetrap. Previously, this
depiction has been attributed to the desire of artist to show an intimate portrait of bourgeois
society. Schapiro argues that the inclusion of the mousetrap is more than this, and in fact
represents theological ideas present in the Christian Middle Ages. This idea being that the body
of Christ is bait for the devil.
1946
Intolerance Thirty Years After. What Has Happened to Motion Pictures? The Call, November 18,
1946, 5.
On a Painting of Van Gogh: Crows in the Wheatfield. View, Fall 1946, 8-14.Reprinted in Selected Papers
II (1978), 87-99.
A Note on The Open City: Some Comments on Farrells Review. New International 12, no. 10
(December 1946): 311-13.
1947
On the Aesthetic Attitude in Romanesque Art. In Art and Thought. Essays in Honour of A.K.
Coomaraswamy, 130-150. London: Luzac and Co., 1947. Reprinted in Selected Papers I (1977),
1-27.

1948
The Value of Modern Art (talk given in the series The Arts and the Artist in Our Society Today,
(March 24, 1948). Columbia University Libraries, Browsing Room, 1947-48.
A Life Round Table on Modern Art. Life, October 11, 1948, 58-59.
1949
Fromentin as a Critic. Partisan Review 16, no. 1 (January 1949): 25-51. Reprinted in Selected Papers IV
(1994), 103-34.
The Place of the Joshua Roll in Byzantine History (paper presented at the Premier Congres
International Byzantino-Slave et Oriental, New York, April 28, 1946). Gazette des Beaux-Arts 35
(March 1949): 161-76. Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979), 48-66.
Essay in Symposium, Religion and the Intellectuals. Partisan Review 17, no. 4 (April 1950): 331-39.
Foreward to Nahum Hazaz Zuzik, 1928-1948. Letters and Painting. New York: American Fund for Israel
Institutions, 1950.
*Vincent van Gogh. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1950 and reprints. Reprint, Garden City, NY:
Doubleday, 1980. Special concise ed., Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1980, and New York: Harry
N. Abrams, 1981. Rev. ed., New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1982, 1984. Concise ed., New York:
Harry N. Abrams, 1983. Collectors ed., New York: Harry N. Abrams for the Easton Press,
Norwalk, CT, 1983. Selections from 1sr ed., New York: Harry N. Abrams, n.d. Portfolio ed., New
York: Harry N. Abrams, n.d.
Viewed Concise ed., New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1983. Pratt
This edition is a concise version of Meyer Schapiros previously published (1969) Van Gogh. It
is a monograph of the artists life and work containing 46 full-page color prints. The prints are
displayed opposite of Schapiros critical text about the image. In the introductory essay,
Schapiro shows the reader how the biography of Van Gogh is inherently linked to his artwork.
This theme continues throughout the critical text about the images contained within. This
book continues to be the seminal text about the work of Van Gogh.
1952
The Joseph Scenes on the Maximianus Throne in Ravenna. Gazette de Beaux-Arts 40 (July 1952): 2738. Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979), 34-47.
Rebellion in Art. In America in Crisis, ed. Daniel Aaron, 202-42. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1952.
Reprinted as The Introduction of ModernArt in America: The Armory Show in Selected Papers
II (1978), 135-78.

*Illuminated Manuscripts (11th Century through the 16th Century) from the Bibliotheque of Their
Highnesses the Dukes dArenber. New York: Jaques Seligmann nd Co., 1952. M.S. does not
appear as the author; the following statement is made: We are indebted to Professor Meyer
Schapiro of Columbia University for the identification of the MSS in this catalogue and
information concerning their contents, origins, and dates. M.S.s copy indicates in brackets the
phrases introduced into his text by J. Seligmann on pp. 6, 10, 14, 16, 20, 38, 54, 64, 72, 76, 80,
and 90, for which reason M.S. withdrew his name from the title page.
*Paul Cezanne. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1952 and reprints. 3rd (corrected) ed., New York: Harry N.
Abrams, 1965 and reprints. Concise ed., New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1988. Selections from 1 st
ed., New York: Harry N. Abrams, n.d. Portfolio ed., New York: Harry N. Abrams.
Second Edition, 1962, with corrections. Pratt
This monograph of the artists work contains 48 full-page color images. In this particular edition,
the pictures have been physically glued onto the page in the book giving the viewer the real
sense that they are looking at a work of art. Similar in style to the Van Gogh monograph that
Schapiro writes later in his career, this book offers full pages of critical text accompanying each
of the images. The introductory essay about the life and work of Cezanne (also written by
Schapiro), discusses at length the artists predominant use of color and the novelty of his work
at the time of its creation. This book remains the primary resource for an overview of the works
of Cezanne.
1953
On Ben-Zion. International Graphic Arts Society Bulletin, June 1953.
Style (paper presented at the Wenner-Gren Foundation, International Symposium in Anthropology,
New York, June 9-20, 1952). In Anthropology Today, ed. Alfred Kroeber, 287-312. Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 1953. Reprinted with some additions in Selected Papers IV (1994),
51-102.
1954
In Memoriam Emil Kaufmann. College Art Journal 13, no. 2 (Winter 1954): 144.
Two Romanesque Drawings in Auxerre and Some Iconographic Problems. In Studies in Art and
Literature for Belle da Costa Greene, ed. Dorothy Miner, 331-49. Princeton, NJ: Princeton
University Press, 1954. Reprinted in Selected Papers I (1977), 306-27.
1955
On Criteria of Periodization in European History (talk given at American Historical Association meeting,
December 28, 1954). Brief notice in American Historical Review 60, no. 3 (April 1955): 720, 724.
Summary printed as Criteria of Periodization in the History of European Art in New Literary
History 1, no. 2 (1970): 113-14.

10

Two Slips of Leonardo and a Slip of Freud. Psychoanalysis 4, no. 2 (Winter 1955-56): 3-8.
The Younger American Painters of Today (talk broadcast on the BBC, December 1955, in connection
with an exhibition of American painting at the Tate Gallery, London). The Listener, January 26,
1956, 146-47.
1956
Leonardo and Freud: an Art-Historical Study. Journal of the History of Ideas 17, no. 2 (April 1956): 147178. JSTOR
This article addresses the psychoanalytic insights that Freud contributed to the work of
Leonardo da Vinci. Schapiro describes Freuds insights as some of the most probing work into
the personality of the artist and derides other historians for largely ignoring his work. The
author summarizes the arguments of Freud and examines their validity in a critical light, usually
finding that Freud theories about the genius hold true.
Introduction to Illustrations for the Bible by Marc Chagall. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co. 1956.
Reprinted in Selected Papers II (1978), 121-34.
On an Italian Painting of the Flagellation of Christ in the Frick Collection. In Scritti di StoriadellArte in
Onore di Lionello Venturi, ed. M. Salmi, 1: 29-53. Rome: De Luca, 1956. Reprinted (with
revisions) in Selected Papers III (1979), 355-79.
1957
The Liberating Quality of Avant-Garde Art (talk given at the American Federation of Arts Convention,
Houston, April 1957). Art News 56, no. 4 (Summer 1957): 36-42 (also printed as a pamphlet for
the American Federation of Arts). Reprinted as Recent Abstract Painting in Selected Papers II
(1978), 213-26.
Notes on Castelseprio. Art Bulletin 39, no. 4 (December 1957): 292-299. Reprinted in Selected Papers
III (1979), 115-130, 137-142. JSTOR
This article is a defense of Schapiros opinion on Castelprio against the claims made by Oleg
Grabar. Schapiro goes through his argument and systematically refutes the idea (presented by
Grabar) that Carolingian and Ottonian examples are not relevant when discussing Castelseprio.
Introduction to Arshile Gorky, by Ethel Schwabacher. New York: Published for the Whitney Museum of
American Art by Macmillan, 1957. Reprinted as Arshile Gorky in Selected Papers II (1978), 17983. Pratt
Schapiro writes the introduction to this text about the artist Arshile Gorky. In it, Schapiro offers
his personal account of the strengths of Gorky not just as an artist, but as a person. He
compliments Schwabacher on her understanding and sensitivity to this artist in exile.

11

Simultaneous Contrast in Painting. Discussion of a paper presented by Guy Habasque at the

Colloquium of the Centre de Recherches de Psychologie Comparative, Paris, March 18-20, 1954.
In Problemas de la Couleur, ed. Ignace Meyerson, 248-53. Paris: Sevpen, 1957.
1958
New Light on Seurat. Art News 57, no. 2 (April 1958): 22-24, 44-45, 52.
The Significance to Medical History of the Newly Discovered Fourth Century Roman Catacomb Fresco.
Abstract of talk at the New York academy of Medicine. Bulletin of the New York Academy of
Medicine 34, no. 10 (October 1958): 685-86.
The Decoration of the Leningrad Manuscript of Bede. Scriptorium 12, no. 2 (1958): 191-207.
Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979), 199-224.
1959
Proceedings of the Congres International Extraordinaire des Critiques dArt, Brasilia/Sao Paulo/Rio de
Janeiro, Septemer 17-25, 1959. Printed for participants (in French).
Foreward to Cezanne. Exhibition catalog, Wildenstein and Co., New York, November 5-Decemer 5, 1959.
Reprinted in Selected Papers II (1978), 39-41.
A Note on the Wall Strips of Saxon Churches. The Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 18,
no.4 (December 1959): 123-125. JSTOR
Schapiro discusses the thin strips of stone in relief on the walls of church towers from the tenth
and eleventh centuries. He discusses whether the origin of these strips lies with native halftimbered work or with pilasters of Carolingian and Ottonian churches of the Rhineland.
Schapiro introduces more evidence in defense of the theory of derivation from native
woodwork, but in the end ends up saying that our knowledge of the history of architecture is
too fragmentary to say conclusively where the work originates.
A Note on the Merode Altarpiece. Art Bulletin41, no. 4 (December 1959): 327-328. JSTOR
Here Schapiro adds to original symbolic interpretation of the Merode Altarpiece by discussing
the wooden board in which Joseph is drilling holes. He cites a Netherlandish painting from 1440
as having a similar board, which is actually a box with ventilation holes used to store fish that is
used as bait. Given that his original writing viewed the mousetrap as being symbolic of Christ as
bait for the devil, seeing the wooden board in this light can be seen as the continuation and
strengthening of this argument.

12

1960
An Illuminated English Psalter of the Early Thirteenth Century. Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld
Institutes 23, no 3-4 (July-December 1960): 179-189. Reprinted in Selected Papers III (1979).
JSTOR
In this essay Schapiro discusses the religious symbolism of this previously uninterpreted psalter.
He says that this psalter is unlike others because it includes no calendar or hint of the original
owner. Through analysis of Saints highlighted within the text, Schapiro concludes that the
psalter was most likely written in a monastic center in south-east England, perhaps even
London. With the additional evaluation of the calligraphy, he estimates that it was probably
produced around the year 1220.
In Memoriam, Wilhelm Koehler. Art Bulletin 42, no. 4 (December 1960): 302.
The Horace Richter Collection: Contemporary American Painting and Sculpture. Charlotte, N.C.: The Mint
Museum of Art, 1960.
On the Humanity of Abstract Painting. Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, no.
10 (1960): 316-2. Reprinted in Selected Papers II (1978), 227-232.
Preface to Israel, ancient Mosaics. New York: New York Graphic Society, 1960, 5-13. Reprinted in
Selected Papers III (1979), 20-33.
1961
Mr. Berenson's Values. Encounter 16, no. 1 (January 1961): 57-65. Reprinted (with corrections and
additions) in Selected Papers IV (1994), 209-26.
1962
Foreward to The Louis E. Stern collection: [catalogue of a special exhib. held at the Brooklyn Museum
from 25 Sept. 1962 through 10 March 1963]. New York: The Brooklyn Museum, 1962.
Foreward to Forrest Bess. Exhibition catalog, Betty Parsons Gallery, New York, January 8-27, 1962.
The Judgment of Modern Art as a Social and Psychological Phenomenon. Paper presented and
distribute as the Institute for Religion and Social Studies, New York, April 9, 1962.
Jan Muller, XXXI Biennale, Venezia, 1962. In 2 Pittori, 2 Scultori, Stati Uniti dAmerica, exhibition
catalog (in English and Italian) under the auspices of the International Council of the Museum of
Modern Art, New York.

13

1963
The Bowman and the Bird on the Ruthwell Cross and Other Works: The Interpretation of Secular
Themes In Early Mediaeval Religious Art. Art Bulletin 45, no. 4 (December 1963): 351-355.
JSTOR
Schapiro begins this essay with the question of whether every image in mediaeval art is
necessarily symbolic and religious, in particular the animals and their accompanying people. He
says that while there are many scholars who believe that even these inclusions must be
symbolic. There are others, most notably St. Bernard, who believe these figures have nothing to
do with religion. In developing his argument he discusses the Ruthwell Cross in particular,
taking the reader through the historical context of each. He concludes that in this case the
representation of the Bowman and the Bird are indeed secular.
Cezanne as a Watercolorist. Introduction to Cezannes Watercolors, exhibition catalog, M. Knoedler
and Co., New York, arranged by the Department of Art history, Columbia University, New York,
April 1963. Reprinted in Selected Papers II (1978), 43-45.
On David Siqueiros-A dilemma for Artists. Dissent 10 (Spring 1963): 106, 197.
On Alexander Calder (talk delivered at MacDowell Colony, August 24, 1963, on the occasion of the
award of the Edward MacDowell Medal to Alexander Calder). MacDowell Colony Report for
1963, 11-12. Peterborough, NH, and New York, 1964.
The Reaction Against Impressionism in the 1880s: Its Nature and causes. Problems of the 19 th and 20th
Centuries (paper presented at the Twentieth International Congress of the History of Art,
September 1961). In Studies in Western Art: Acts of the Twentieth International Congress of the
History of Art, ed. Millard Meiss et al., 4: 91-92. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1963.
A Relief in Rodez and the Beginnings of Romanesque Sculpture in Southern France (paper presented at
the Twentieth International Congress of the History of Art, September 1961). In Studies in
Western Art: Acts of the Twentieth International Congress of the History of Art, ed. Millard Meiss
et al., 1: 40-66. Princeton, NJ:
1964
On the Relation of Patron and Artist: Comments on a Proposed Model for the Scientist. The American
Journal of Sociology 70, no. 3 (November 1964): 363-369. Reprinted in Selected Papers IV (1994):
227-238. JSTOR
Schapiro discusses the argument put forth by Professor William M. Evan that scientists should
use the model of the patron and the artist when working in industry. He does not argue
whether the model would be good for science, he simply evaluates its correctness within the
realm of art history. In his argument he brings up the notion that even in the Middle Ages there
existed art outside of artist/patron system, art for arts sake. He concludes that the scenario Mr.
Evan describes only truly existed in the Soviet Union, where the State supported all artists. The
romantic notion of the patron supported artist in reality is just that, a romantic notion.
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Kurt Seligmann-The Early Years. Foreward to exhibition catalog, D'Arcy Galleries, New York, January
27-February 15, 1964.
Diderot on the Artist and Society. Preface to Society and the Freedom of the Creative Man in Diderots
Thought, by Joseph L. Waldauer, 5-11. Geneva and paris: Droz, 1964. Reprinted in Selected
Papers IV (1994): 201-208.
The Parma Ildefonsus: a Romanesque Illuminated Manuscript from Cluny, and Related Works.
Monographs On Archaeology and Fine Arts, 11. New York: College Art Association of America,
1964.
The Truth of Art (questions addressed to Jean Wahl and his reply). In Philosophical InterrogationsSeven Philosophers and Theologians, ed. Sydney and Beatrice Rome, 183-85. New York: Holt,
Rinehart and Winston, 1964.
1965
In Memoriam Matthew Fryde. Polish Review 10, no. 2 (Spring 1965): 106-107.
In memoriam Kurt Goldstein. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 26 (December 1965): 302303.
In Memoriam Alfred Rosmer (1877-1964). Dissent 12, no. 1 (Winter 1965): 75-76.
1966
On a Letter from Hannah Arendt on the Holocaust. New York Review of Books, March 17, 1966, 28.
On the Role of Art in Contemporary Society (paper presented at the International Symposium on Fine
Arts in the East and the West, Tokyo, April 4, 1966). Proceeding of the International Symposium
on Fine Arts in the East and the West, 80-87. Tokyo: Compiled by the Japanese National
commission for UNESCO, 1966.
On Delmore Schwartz (1913-1966). New York Review of Books, September 8, 1966, 15.
, and Colin Eisler. The Merode Mousetrap. The Burlington Magazine 108, no. 761
(August 1966): 428-430.
Vladimir Gregorievitch Simkhovitch (1874-1959). In Memoriam. American Philosophical Association
Proceedings and Addresses 39 (October 1966): 124.
On Perfection, Coherence, and Unity of Form and Content (paper presented at the Philosophy of Art
Symposium of the Institute of Philosophy, New York, 1964). In Art and Philosophy: A Symposium,
ed. Sidney Hook, 3-15. New York: New York Universtiy Press, 1966. Reprinted in Selected Papers
IV (1994), 33-50.

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1967
On Some Problems in the Semiotics of Visual Art: Field and Vehicle in Image-Signs (paper presented at
the Second International Colloquium on Semiotics, Kazimierz, Poland, September 1966). Printed
in Semiotica 1, no. 3 (1969): 223-42.Reprinted in Selected Papers IV (1994), 1-32.
Wittkower, Rudolf, Douglas Fraser, Howard Hibbard, and Milton J. Lewine. Essays in the History of Art
Presented to Rudolf Wittkower. London: Phaidon, 1967. Pratt
This book is a collection of essays which his colleagues wrote to honor Rudolf Wittkower on his
sixty-fifth birthday. Schapiros contribution was an essay titled An Irish-Latin Text on the Angel
with the Ram in Abrahams Sacrifice. In this essay he addresses artworks that use the image of
the angel carrying the ram, and discusses their religious origins. Other contributors to this tome
are Ernst Gombrich, Phyllis Pray Bober, and Donald Posner.

Baudelaire between the Imaginary and the Real (talk presented at the Poetry Society of America,
November 30, 1967). Abstract printed in Bulletin of the Poetry Society of America, December
1967, 4-6.
Introduction to the text vol. of The Birds Head Haggada of the Bezalel National Art Museum in
Jerusalem, ed. M. Spitzer, 15-19. Jerusalem: Tarshish Books, 1967. Reprinted n Selected Papers
III (1979), 380-386.
1968
The Apples of Cezanne. An Essay on the Meaning of Still Life. Art News Annual 34 (1968): 35-53.
Reprinted in Selected Papers II (1978), 1-38.
Sima. Preface to exhibition catalog, Musee National dArt Moderne, paris, November 7-December 23,
1968, 9.
The Still Life as a Personal Object-A Note on Heidegger and Van Gogh. In The Reach of Mind: Essays in
Memory of Kurt Goldstein, ed. Marianne L. Simmel, 203-9. New York: Springer, 1968. Reprinted
(with further notes) in Selected Papers IV (1994), 135-42.
1969
"Religious Imagination and the Artist (talk presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Arts,
Religion and Contemporary Culture, Museum of Modern Art, New York, February 5, 1965). ARC
Directions, no. 7 (Fall 1969): 1-4.
Bob Thompson. Preface to exhibition catalog, New School for Social Research Art Center, Wolman
Hall, February 11-March 6, 1969.
Minor White. Postface to Mirrors, Messages, Manifestations, by Minor White. New York: An Aperture
monograph, 1969.

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1970
Criteria of Periodization in the History of European Art. New Literary History 1, no. 2 (Winter 1970):
113-125. JSTOR
Schapiro the first part of this three part paper. He discusses the merits of periodizing European
art as form of historical classification. He states that to be most successful periodizing must be
vague in boundaries and multiple classifications must be allowed. The second part is
A Proposal for Democratizing the Board of Trustees, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Art News 68,
no. 9 (January 1970): 29.
A Reply to the Protest of Certain Artists against eeping Picassos Guernica in the Museum of Modern
Art (letter to the Art Workers Coalition, Fecruary 27, 1970). In Picassos Guernica, ed. Ellen C.
Oppler, 242-43. New York: W.W. Norton, 1987.
Barnett Newman. Talk presented at the memorial meeting, Campbell Funeral Chapel, New York, July
6, 1970.
1973
Paul Smith. Talk presented to the Department of Mathematics, Columbia University, New York, at a
dinner in honor of Paul A. Smith, March 23, 1973.
Talk accepting the Award of the Art Dealers Association of America, April 25, 1973.
Robert Branner. Talk presented at the memorial service, St. Pauls Chapel, Columbia University, New
York, December 18, 1973.
The Miniatures of the Florence Diatessaron (Laurentian ms Or. 81): Their Place in Late Mediaeval Art
and Supposed Connection with Early Christian and Insular Art. Art Bulletin 55, no. 4 (December
1973): 494-531. JSTOR
In this article Schapiro examines claims made by Carl Nordenfaulk that place the beginning of
Christian art some fifty years before it was previously thought to have started. In doing this he
takes into account not only the artwork that Nordenfaulk cites, but also the larger body of
knowledge that he has consulted in order to draw his conclusions. He concludes that
Nordenfaulks assertions were false, he refutes the evidence of Nordenfaulk, and claims that the
miniatures in question do not predate the earliest Christian art previously known.
Words and Pictures. On theLliteral and the Symbolic in the Illustration of a Text. Approaches to
Semiotics, 11. The Hague: Mouton, 1973. NYPL

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1974
In Memory of Audrey Stern Hess. Memorial Service, September 24, 1974.
Parker Tyler. Talk at memorial meeting, Jefferson Market Library, New York, October 28, 1974.
Testimony given in Rothko case, October 1974. New York Bar Association Library, Surrogate File No.
1368 (1970), appendix, 4154-84.
1976
Picasso's Woman with a Fan: On Transformation and Self-Transformation. In Essays in Archaeology
and the Humanities: In Memoriam Otto J. Brendel, 249-254. Mainz, W. Germany: P. von Zabern,
1976. Reprinted in Selected Papers II (1978), 111-20.
1977
Selected Papers I: Romanesque Art. New York: G. Braziller, 1977. Pratt
368 pages with 8 chapters , black and white images. Part of a collected set of three volumes
including Modern Art, 19th and 20th Centuries and Late Antique, Early Christian and Mediaeval
Art. Schaprio selected this collection of essays specifically to be useful to students of
Romanesque Art. In the introduction he points out that the several of the essays contain many
errors, but it would take too much rewriting to correct them. Included in this volume are the
reprinted essays (indicated in original citation) in which Schapiro discusses the aesthetic attitude
in Romanesque art, the sculptures of Souillac, and the Romanesqu sculptures of Moissac.
1978
On Tom Hess (talk presented at the memorial service, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York,
September 25, 1978). Art In America 66, no. 6 (November-December 1978): 12-13.
Selected Papers II: Modern Art, 19th & 20th Centuries. New York: G. Braziller, 1978. Pratt
277 pages with 10 chapters, 11 color plates and numerous black and white images. Part of a
collected set of three volumes including Romanesque Art and Late Antique, Early Christian, and
Mediaeval Art. The essays collected within this volume were written over a period of 40 years
(citations for original essays given above) and reflect the Schapiros changing views on the topic.
He mentions specifically that the views he expressed in The Nature of Abstract Art no longer
sufficiently reflected his views at the time of publication. Amongst the topics covered are Seurat,
Cezanne, Arshile Gorky, and Mondrian.

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1979
Selected Papers III: Late Antique, Early Christian and Mediaeval Art: Selected Papers. New York: G.
Braziller, 1979. Pratt
414 pages with 23 chapters and 172 black and white illustrations. Part of a collected set of three
volumes including Modern Art: 19th and 20th Centuries and Romanesque Art. The works in this
volume span the breadth of about one thousand years. The book is a collection of research
essays that Schapiro wrote about single works of religious art (see citations for original printings
above). In these studies, as with all of his work, Schapiro focuses not only on the artwork or the
religion, but also on the secular culture of the time. He views this as a necessary part of the
picture when trying to recreate the meaning of art. Some of the topics covered within the
volume are the Merode Altarpiece, the frescoes of Castelseprio, the Leningrad Manuscript of
Bede, and the Beatus Apocalypse of Gerona.
1980
On Barnett Newman, a Memorial Talk presented at St. Peters Church, New York, February 15, 1980,
on the occasion of the Creatio et Spiritus Award to Barnett Newman.
Paul Smith, in Memoriam. Talk presented at St. Pauls Chapel, Columbia University, New York,
November 20, 1980.
1981
Gandy Brodie, in Memoriam (talk presented at a memorial service, New School for Social Research,
New York, November 10, 1975). Art in America 64, no. 1 (January 1981): 109.
On Alfred Barr. In Alfred Barr, Jr., a Memorial Tribute. New York: The Museum of Modern Art, October
31, 1981 (pamphlet).
1982
Style, Artiste et Societe, trans. Blaise Allan et. Al. Paris: Gallimard, 1982.
1983
On the Life and Work of Arthur Kingsley Porter. Talk presented at the Columbia University Mediaeval
Art Forum, New York, April 10, 1983.
Emily Nelligans Drawings. Statement on jacket of Maine Drawings, by Emily Nelligan. Cranberry Isles,
ME: The Tidal Press, 1983.

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1985
, Muller, Jan, Martica Sawin, and Thomas M. Messer. Jan Muller: major paintings, 19561957 : January 15-February 23, 1985. New York (N.Y.): Oil & Steel Gallery, 1985.
, and David Finn. The Romanesque Sculpture of Moissac. New York: G. Braziller, 1985.
NYPLMM
143 pages with 77 black and white illustrations. This book concerns the abbey of Moissac in
southern France. It is the site where stone carving was revived in the eleventh century after an
absence of more than 500 years. It is separated into two parts, Part I is The Sculptures of the
Cloister and Part II is The Sculpture of the South Portal and Porch. Through each section,
Schapiro uses detailed language to guide the reader through the visual qualities of the abbey.
With accompanying photography specifically taken for this volume by David Finn, the book truly
provides the reader with a first hand experience of this incredible place.
1988
On George M. Jaffin. Statement printed in the brochure of the America-Israel Foundation Cultural
Achievement Award Dinner, celebrating his eghty-third birthday, May 4, 1988.
1994
Selected Papers IV: Theory and Philosophy of Art: Style, Artist, and Society. New York: George Braziller,
1994. Pratt
253 pages with black and white images. Although published much later, Schapiro includes this
as the fourth book in his series of collected papers along with Romanesque Art, Modern Art, 19th
and 20th Centuries, and Late Antique, Early Christian and Mediaeval Art. The essays contained
within were all previously published in journals and symposia (see original citations above).
Unlike the previous volumes, this book focuses on the questions of theory, methods, and
concepts that apply to the interpretation of different aspects of style. Some of the essays
included are, Eugene Fromentin as Critic, Freud and Leonardo: An Art Historical Study, and
Diderot on the Artist and Society. Eleven essays are collected here in total.
, James Thompson, and Susan Raines. A Vermont Visit With Meyer Schapiro (1991).
Oxford Art Journal 17, no. 1, Meyer Schapiro (1994): 3-12. JSTOR
This is an informal interview conducted with Schapiro and his wife, Lillian Milgram at their home
in Vermont. In it Schapiro discusses his relationships with artists and art collectors as well as the
development of his superior career.

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1995
Mondrian: on the humanity of abstract painting. New York: George Braziller, 1995.
1996
Words, Script, and Pictures: Semiotics of Visual Language. New York: G. Braziller, 1996. Pratt
199 pages with 50 black and white images. This text contains two previously given lectures by
Schapiro. The first, Words and Pictures: On the Literal and the Symbolic in the Illustration of a
Text, was originally given in 1969 at a symposium titled, Language, Symbol, Reality, at St.
Marys College in Indiana. The second, Script in Pictures: Semiotics of Visual Language, was
first presented in 1976 at a symposium at the University of Pittsburgh and was later revised.
In Words and Pictures, Schapiro gives an analysis of the relationship between the images used
to illustrate text. This essay has been viewed as one of the most challenging in the field of
semiotics. In Script in Pictures, Schapiro addresses the topic of mediaeval art and how artists
of that time dealt with the interweaving of text and image.
, David Craven, and Robert Motherwell. Commentary: Aesthetics as Ethics in the
Writings of Robert Motherwell and Meyer Schapiro. Archives of the American Art Journal 36,
no. 1 (1996): 25-32.
1997
Impressionism: reflections and perceptions. New York: George Braziller, 1997. NYPLMM
359 pages with color and black and white illustrations. This book is based on the six Pattin
Lectures that Schapiro gave at the Indiana Universtiy, Bloomington in 1961. These lectures were
taped and their transcriptions served as his first manuscript about Impressionism. Throughout
his career he revised and expanded the ideas as well as the list of accompanying illustrations
contained within. At age 89, he requested that James Thompson, Associate Professor at
Western Carolina University, be responsible for the publishing of this volume. The result is a
book that can be described as the culmination of Schapiros lifetime work dealing with the
subject of Impressionism. With twelve complete chapter about subject such as The Concept of
Impressionism, Portraiture and Philosophy, and Impressionism and Science, the book is a
synthesis of ideas where Schapiro (as always) places the role of art within the confines of
contemporary society. This book is an invaluable reference for anyone studying this period in
the history of art.
Karmel, Pepe, and Rosalind E. Krauss. 1997. The crisis of the easel picture. Approaching Pollock, a
symposium. Sound Recordings.

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1999
Worldview in Painting--Art and Society. New York, N.Y.: George Braziller, 1999. NYPLMM
256 pages, black and white illustrations. This volume is in two parts. Part I deals the role of
philosophy in painting. It consists of two essays, the first titled Philosophy and Worldview in
Painting, and the second Cezanne and the Philosophers. Published posthumously, they are
both transcriptions of lectures he gave during his lifetime, the first being supplemented with
notes by Schapiro.
Part II discusses the relationship of society, art, and the artist. It is comprised of notes that he
wrote, beginning in the early 1930s, along with several (unedited) short essays. In the preface,
his wife (who was responsible for the publishing of this book) warns that Schapiro himself may
have rejected and certainly would have rewritten much of what is published in this section.
Amongst the topics covered are Art and Social Change, The Arts Under Socialism, The Value
of Modern Art, The Public Use of Art, and On the Art Market.
2000
, Lillian Milgram Schapiro, and Daniel Esterman. Meyer Schapiro: His Painting, Drawing,
and Sculpture. New York: H.N. Abrams, 2000. NYPLMM
256 pages with black and white and color illustrations. This book is a monograph of the artwork
of Meyer Schapiro. The volume contains three of Schapiros essays, On Representing and
Knowing, Color as Expressive, and Art Schools: Drawing from the Figure, all dealing with
Schapiros relationship to his own drawing and painting. Following the texts, the book contains
page after page of delicately rendered line and charcoal drawings. Schapiro draws the buildings
and architectural features about which he writes. He also does intimate line drawings of his
family at home, as well as studies of the city of New York. His paintings range from abstract
color studies, to portraits, to Impressionistic landscapes. The collection highlights the fact that
although Schapiro is primarily known for his role as an art historian, he approaches being an
historian through the eyes of an artist.
The Unity of Picasso's Art. New York: George Braziller, 2000. NYPL
, Smith, Chuck, Ari Marcopoulos, Willem Dafoe, Ruth Maleczech, and Robert A. F.
Thurman. 2000. Forrest Bess key to the riddle. New York, NY: Checkerboard Foundation.
2002
, Felicity D. Scott, and Sara Ogger. Looking Forward to Looking Backward: A Dossier of
Writings on Architecture from the 1930s. Grey Room, no. 6 (Winter 2002): 66-109.
, and Terry Smith. 2002. Notes from Meyer Schapiro's Art History Theory and Methods
Course.
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2005
The Language of Forms: Lectures on Insular Manuscript Art. New York: Pierpont Morgan Library, 2005.
Pratt
199 pages with both color and black and white images. This text, published posthumously, is a
collection of the lectures that Schapiro gave at the Morgan Library in 1968. After years of study,
the lectures represent a breadth of knowledge about Insular Manuscripts that was previously
unavailable in print. In his study, Schapiro took a totally new approach to these books from
Ireland, England and Scotland and therefore this volume is of the utmost importance.
2006
, and Linda Seidel. Romanesque Architectural Sculpture. The Charles Eliot Norton lectures.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006.
2009
, and Daniel Esterman. Meyer Schapiro Abroad: Letters to Lillian and Travel Notebooks. Los
Angeles: Getty Research Institute, 2009.

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