Born in Lansing, MI, Gary Lee Shaffer was a forward-looking and self-sufficient artist who avoided social and political movements, working independently in a non-objective, expressionist manner. He moved to New York in 1957 to pursue his education and a broader, more adventurous creative life in a larger urban setting. After two summer residencies at the Hans Hoffman School of Fine Arts, Provincetown, MA, Shaffer felt that he was not painting well and joined the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop (RBPW), New York City. There he found his medium in printmaking and began entering his prints in competitions and selling them. Over his years at RBPW, Shaffer made acquaintance with artists Jay Milder, Red Grooms, Philip Guston, and Franz Kline, and became friends with Eldzier Cortor and others who came and went to explore printmaking. Shaffer stayed in contact with his one-time teacher, Hans Hoffman (1880-1966) until Hoffman's death in 1966. Profoundly inspired by the German-born Hoffman, Shaffer's interest in German culture, opera, art and literature, and travels to Europe are seen in his titles. After moving to San Francisco, Shaffer's editions gave way to monotypes. From 1986 to 2000, he published his prints at Kala Art Institute, Berkeley, CA.
