Ethel Shipton American, b. 1963

“Space and time, movement and place, I see going hand in hand. These two elements continue to be the groundwork for my artwork. We all continue to move between time and space on a moment-by-moment basis.” – Ethel Shipton

Ethel Shipton was born and raised in Laredo, Texas. She received a BFA from the University of Texas at Austin in 1989. The artist worked for the Texas House of Representatives as a photographer for more than eight years. She lived and worked in Mexico City in 1990 and 1992, then returned to Texas and settled in San Antonio.

 A strong conceptual foundation informs Ethel Shipton’s practice and encompasses a variety of expressions. Through painting, installation, photography, and text, Shipton spotlights moments of clarity that flit by in the comings and goings of daily life. Past works have centered on urban scenes, language, and attempts to process information. Time is an essential issue in her oeuvre. 

Shipton’s artwork is held in the permanent collections of several institutions, including El Museo del Barrio in New York, NY, as well as Ruby City, San Antonio Museum of Art, and The McNay Art Museum in San Antonio, TX. In 2023, the Laredo Center for the Arts in her hometown of Laredo, TX, hosted her solo exhibition, Ethel Shipton: Los Dos Laredos y Más. Shipton was selected to attend the 2017 Berlin Residency Program with Blue Star Contemporary, in partnership with Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin, Germany. Shipton’s recent group exhibitions include Jangueando: Recent Acquisitions, 2021–2025, El Museo del Barrio, New York, NY; Regarding Ruscha, McNay Art, San Antonio, TX; Stitch in Time, Women and Their Work in Austin, TX; Piecework at the Dallas Center for Contemporary Art, TX; and Latinx Art: Transcending Borders at Octavia Art Gallery, Houston, TX.

VIEW ARTWORKS ON ARTSY