Robert Mapplethorpe was a renowned American photographer, born in 1946 in Floral Park, Queens. He attended Pratt Institute in 1963, where he studied drawing, painting, and sculpture. During this time, he developed an interest in film and video, which would later influence his photographic style. Mapplethorpe was inspired by famous artists such as Joseph Cornell and Marcel Duchamp, whose work he admired and sought to emulate.
Mapplethorpe was a multi-talented artist who worked with various materials and created mixed-media collages using images cut from books and magazines. He also experimented with Polaroid photography in the 1970s, which allowed him to capture his artwork in a new way. He began photographing artists, painters, musicians, and activists, and soon became known for his black and white portraits, which he felt were more honest and direct than color photography.
Self Portrait, 1985
In 1973, Mapplethorpe's first solo gallery exhibition, "Polaroids," was mounted at the Light Gallery in New York City. This show marked the beginning of his career as a photographer, and it received critical acclaim. Two years later, he purchased a Hasselblad medium-format camera, which allowed him to create more detailed and nuanced images. He began shooting his "Circle of Friends" series, which included portraits of famous artists, writers, and musicians.
Tulips, 1987
Mapplethorpe also worked on commercial projects, creating album cover art for Patti Smith and a series of portraits for Interview Magazine. His work was highly sought after, and he quickly became a celebrity in the art world. However, in late 1989, Mapplethorpe was diagnosed with AIDS, which would ultimately claim his life. Despite his illness, he continued to work on challenging commissions to expand his photographic inquiry and leave a lasting legacy.
Before his death, Robert Mapplethorpe founded the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation on May 27, 1988. The foundation's purpose was to protect his work, advance his vision and promote the causes he cared about. He served as the first president of its board of trustees and established two mandates. The first mandate was to promote photography as an art form. The second
mandate was to support HIV/AIDS medical research. The foundation continues to support photography programs at both major museums and small institutions through exhibitions, acquisitions, and publications, as per Mapplethorpe's wishes.
Mapplethorpe's enormous and powerful body of work has established him as one of the most important artists of the twentieth century. His work often explored themes of sexuality, gender, and identity, and it challenged traditional notions of art and beauty.