In March 1989 Mapplethorpe died from AIDS-related complications at the young age of 42, yet in his short lifetime he had established himself as one of the most important artists of the late 20 th century. Simultaneous to this work, Mapplethorpe was shooting self-portraits and even when he was diagnosed with AIDS in 1986, he continued to pick up the camera and shoot.
#ROBERT MAPLETHORPE PICTURES OF GAY MEN AND DRAG QUEENS PROFESSIONAL#
The formal, elegant style that became Mapplethorpe’s trademark was consistent when photographing any of his subjects, whether it was ‘flowers or cocks’, as the artist often said.Īmong his most iconic works are the images he took of professional bodybuilder Lisa Lyon in the late ‘70s – she was still quite a novelty during the time and this project also went to counter the common misconception that Mapplethorpe only photographed men the African-American men styled as objects of desire – more sculpture-like than human and also the intimate portraits of renowned figures of the New York art world – including poet and musician Patti Smith, one of Mapplethorpe’s muses and lovers. In fact, some of his most memorable images are of flowers. It may come as a surprise to some that Mapplethorpe’s work didn’t only center on sex and people. Mapplethorpe, however, was a catalytic force in blurring the boundaries between pornography and fine art, the classical and the (homo-) erotic, and in turn helped to legitimize pornographic images in a fine art context with his infamous X Portfolio. Until the advent of gay liberation, images like his were kept strictly tucked away in the realms of the forbidden. And through photography, he aimed to expose these outcast portions of society in the best possible light. Mapplethorpe was constantly striving to push boundaries, vying to expose marginalized groups of the population – groups that he himself was actively a part of. Mapplethorpe’s self-portrait with a bullwhip in his anus (1978) is proof of his bold determination in the face of all protest, and underlined the fact that his work was often intentionally provocative. Although his graphic portrayals of the male genitalia raised more than a few eyebrows, the public reaction was thrilling to Mapplethorpe, and he delighted in the responses and attention that his images received. His sex pictures depicted re-enactments of sadomasochist sex acts with male models he had met in underground gay clubs, such as Mineshaft, Manhattan. He was adorning the walls of respectable NY art galleries with content most hadn’t seen before – pornographic images styled with a classical guise. Sexually explicit, provocative and audacious – his photographs had the power to shock, seduce, and appal in equal doses. In the late ‘70s, Robert Mapplethorpe’s sex pictures exploded onto the New York art scene. Paul Getty Trust and the David Geffen Foundation, 2011.7.31 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, with funds provided by the J. Paul Getty Trust and the David Geffen Foundation, 2011.7.21 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation Self-Portrait, 1985, Gelatin silver print, Image: 38.7 x 38.6 cm (15 1/4 x 15 3/16 in.) Jointly acquired by the J.