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Robert Mapplethorpe

The American artist Robert Mapplethorpe dominated the world of photography during the outgoing 20th century and was one of the most important and provocative photographers of his time. He was a cultural figure during his lifetime. No other photographer has been so controversially debated both during his life and after.

His technical precision left nothing to chance and the objective photographic approach he took towards his models was as though he was documenting sculptures. It was often highlighted all the more by his focus on isolated details of individual body parts. Mapplethorpe returned to the iconography of ancient and renaissance art, developed his own photographic style, and designed a neo-classical image of the human body, which found its way into his commercial photography. His inimitable photographic style is characterized by radically reduced compositions of formal perfection, imbued with extraordinary sculptural qualities. The thematic diversity and the immediacy found between the photographer and his subjects make Mapplethorpe's photographs timeless and gives them an irresistible appeal.

  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Sonia and Tracy, 1988

    gelatin silver print
    15.35 x 15.35 in (39 x 39 cm)

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  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Melody Danielson, 1987

    silver gelatin print
    23.23 x 19.29 in (59 x 49 cm)

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  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Thomas and Dovanna, 1986

    gelatin silver print
    19.69 x 23.62 in (50 x 60 cm)

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  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Miguel Cruz, 1986

    gelatin silver print
    23.23 x 18.9 in (59 x 48 cm)

  • ×
  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Lydia Cheng, 1985

    vintage gelatin silver print
    19.29 x 15.35 in (49 x 39 cm)

  • ×
  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Raymond, 1985

    gelatin silver print
    19.29 x 14.96 in (49 x 38 cm)

  • ×
  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Pear, 1985

    gelatin silver print
    14.96 x 14.96 in (38 x 38 cm)

  • ×
  • Robert Mapplethorpe, R M Glass Collection, 1984

    gelatin silver print
    15.35 x 14.96 in (39 x 38 cm)

  • ×
  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Felix Brown, 1984

    vintage gelatin silver print
    16.14 x 20.08 in (41 x 51 cm)

  • ×
  • Robert Mapplethorpe, RM Glass Collection, 1984

    gelatin silver print
    14.96 x 14.96 in (38 x 38 cm)

  • ×
  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Ken Moody, 1983

    vintage gelatin silver print
    15.35 x 15.35 in (39 x 39 cm)

  • ×
  • Robert Mapplethorpe, Ken Moody, 1983

    gelatin silver print
    15.35 x 14.96 in (39 x 38 cm)

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