Joel Shapiro (born September 27, 1941, New York City, New York) is an American sculptor renowned for his dynamic work composed of simple rectangular shapes.  While serving his Peace Corp time in India, Shapiro saw many Indian art works, and has said that “India gave me the sense of … the possibility of being an artist.” In India “Art was pervasive and integral to the society”, and he has said that "the struggle in my work to find a structure that reflects real psychological states may well use Indian sculpture as a model."
 He lives and works in New York City.