Robert Mapplethorpe
United States • 1946 - 1989
Presentation
Robert Mapplethorpe was born in 1946 in New York and died due to AIDS in 1989 in Boston. Mapplethorpe is a major photographer, known for his black and white pictures, which enhance the beauty of both people and objects.
In the 60's, he studied painting, drawing and sculpture. In 1967, he became friends with Patti Smith, who had a major influence on his work, throughout his life. It was only in 1970 that Mapplethorpe tried Polaroid photography, which led him to exhibit for the first time in New York.
Fascinated by this tool, he continued this approach by magnifying male and female nudes of antique statues. He managed to highlight the muscle structure of his subjects, like his wife Lisa Lyon. He sculpted bodies along with his lens, and managed to glorify the beauty of his subjects.
In his photos, Mapplethorpe most of all tried to achieve aesthetic perfection. For this, he focused his work on body and still life. By taking pictures of the features of the human body, the artist highlighted the shapes of the body, as if they were delicate flowers.
Mapplethorpe's work is marked by a brutal representation of a lustful desire, though a poetic and a splendid one.
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Who is the artist?
Robert Mapplethorpe was born in 1946 in New York and died due to AIDS in 1989 in Boston. Mapplethorpe is a major photographer, known for his black and white pictures, which enhance the beauty of both people and objects.
In the 60's, he studied painting, drawing and sculpture. In 1967, he became friends with Patti Smith, who had a major influence on his work, throughout his life. It was only in 1970 that Mapplethorpe tried Polaroid photography, which led him to exhibit for the first time in New York.
Fascinated by this tool, he continued this approach by magnifying male and female nudes of antique statues. He managed to highlight the muscle structure of his subjects, like his wife Lisa Lyon. He sculpted bodies along with his lens, and managed to glorify the beauty of his subjects.
In his photos, Mapplethorpe most of all tried to achieve aesthetic perfection. For this, he focused his work on body and still life. By taking pictures of the features of the human body, the artist highlighted the shapes of the body, as if they were delicate flowers.
Mapplethorpe's work is marked by a brutal representation of a lustful desire, though a poetic and a splendid one.
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