Robert Maplethorpe: The Perfect Medium

Robert Maplethorpe: The Perfect Medium by Aline SmithsonMay 18, 2016

Self-Portrait; Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946 - 1989); New York, New York, United States; negative 1980; print 1990; Gelatin silver print; 35.6 x 35.6 cm (14 x 14 in.); 2011.9.21

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Self-Portrait, 1980 Gelatin silver print Image: 34.9 x 35 cm (13 3/4 x 13 3/4 in.) Promised Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, L.2012.88.378 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

Los Angeles is celebrating all things Robert Mapplethorpe with a two-venue museum retrospective, Robert Mapplethorpe:The Perfect Medium and a new publication, Robert Mapplethorpe: The Archive. The exhibitions are at the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Los Angeles Country Museum of Art and will run through July 31, 2016.

13.03_Fig_27Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946–89). Untitled (“Sam—I love you and I need you—hurry home”), 1974, altered color Polaroid print. Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

©Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946–89). Untitled (“Sam—I love you and I need you—hurry home”), 1974, altered color Polaroid print. Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

At LACMA, Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Medium “explores Mapplethorpe’s body of work through early drawings, collages, sculptures, and Polaroid photography; materials from his archive; portraits, still lifes, and figure studies; rare color photographs; and two seldom-seen moving image works. The exhibition also highlights the artist’s relationship to New York’s sexual and artistic undergrounds, as well as his experimentation with a variety of media.”

Also on view, the exhibition Physical: Sex and the Body in the 1980s presents a focused installation of work by other artists drawn from LACMA’s permanent collection that helps place Mapplethorpe in conversation with the art of the 1980s.

Britt Salvesen is curator and head of the Wallis Annenberg Photography Department and the Prints and Drawings Department at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Ajitto; Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946 - 1989); New York, New York, United States; 1981; Gelatin silver print; 45.4 x 35.5 cm (17 7/8 x 14 in.); 2011.7.13

@Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Derrick Cross, 1983 Gelatin silver print Image: 48.5 x 38.2 cm (19 1/8 x 15 1/16 in.) Promised Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, L.2012.88.910 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

The J. Paul Getty Museum is presenting a companion exhibition “exploring Mapplethorpe’s disciplined studio practice and his fascination with classical form and the fine photographic print. Additionally, during the run of Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Medium the Getty Museum’s Center for Photographs will also feature the exhibition The Thrill of the Chase: The Wagstaff Collection of Photographs. Wagstaff’s impressive collection of photographs that were acquired by the Getty Museum in 1984 is one of the cores of the collection of the Department of Photographs. This exhibition and accompanying publication of the same name is an opportunity to focus on Wagstaff’s collection and his role as one of the most important patrons and collectors of photography.”

Paul Martineau is associate curator in the Department of Photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum.

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Andy Warhol, 1983 Gelatin silver print Image: 39.1 x 38.5 cm (15 3/8 x 15 3/16 in.) Promised Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, L.2012.89.156 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

A companion publication to Robert Mapplethorpe: The Photographs entitled Robert Mapplethorpe: The Archive by Frances Terpak and Michelle Brunnick, with essays by Patti Smith and Jonathan Weinberg, will also be published in March coinciding with the exhibition, Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Medium. The book depicts rarely or never before seen studio files and art from every period and vein of Mapplethorpe’s production, including student work, jewelry, sculptures, and commercial assignments.

The result of the dual exhibitions is a fascinating and comprehensive introduction to Mapplethorpe’s career and legacy, featuring a rich selection of illustrations covering the remarkable range of his photographic work—from his self-portraits and figure studies to his floral still lifes. Mapplethorpe’s best-known images are shown alongside work that has been seldom published or exhibited. Key themes include Mapplethorpe’s studio practice, the controversy provoked by the inclusion of his sexually explicit pictures in the 1988-90 retrospective exhibition The Perfect Moment, and the legacy he left behind after his death from AIDS-related complications in 1989.

Calla Lily; Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946 - 1989); New York, New York, United States; negative 1988; print 1990; Gelatin silver print; 49 x 49 cm (19 5/16 x 19 5/16 in.); 2011.9.26

©Robert Mapplethorpe, American, 1946–1989 Calla Lily, 1988 Gelatin silver print Image: 49 x 49 cm (19 5/16 x 19 5/16 in.) Jointly acquired by the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; partial gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation; partial purchase with funds provided by the J. Paul Getty Trust and the David Geffen Foundation, 2011.9.26 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Derrick Cross, 1983 Gelatin silver print Image: 48.5 x 38.2 cm (19 1/8 x 15 1/16 in.) Promised Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, L.2012.88.910 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Flower Arrangement, 1986 Gelatin silver print Image: 49 x 49 cm (19 5/16 x 19 5/16 in.) Promised Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, L.2012.89.566 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

Identical self-portaits of Robert Mapplethorpe with trip cable in hand, 1974

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Identical self-portraits of Robert Mapplethorpe with trip cable in hand, 1974 Gelatin silver print Sheet (each): 9.3 x 11.6 cm (3 11/16 x 4 9/16 in.) Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Held at the Getty Research Institute, 2011.M.20.24 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

Ken and Lydia and Tyler; Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946 - 1989); New York, New York, United States; negative 1985; print 2004; Gelatin silver print; 38.4 x 38.2 cm (15 1/8 x 15 1/16 in.); 2011.7.19

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Ken and Lydia and Tyler, 1985 Gelatin silver print Image: 38.4 x 38.2 cm (15 1/8 x 15 1/16 in.) Jointly acquired by the J. 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, 2011.7.19 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

Ken Moody; Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946 - 1989); New York, New York, United States; 1983; Gelatin silver print; 38.5 x 38.7 cm (15 3/16 x 15 1/4 in.); 2011.7.16

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Ken Moody, 1983 Gelatin silver print Image: 38.5 x 38.7 cm (15 3/16 x 15 1/4 in.) Jointly acquired by the J. 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, 2011.7.16 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Lisa Lyon, 1981 Gelatin silver print Image: 45.1 x 35 cm (17 3/4 x 13 3/4 in.) Promised Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, L.2012.88.482 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Lisa Lyon, 1982 Gelatin silver print Image: 38.4 x 38.4 cm (15 1/8 x 15 1/8 in.) Promised Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, L.2012.88.614 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

Thomas; Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946 - 1989); New York, New York, United States; negative 1987; print 1994; Gelatin silver print; 48.8 x 48.8 cm (19 3/16 x 19 3/16 in.); 2011.7.31

©Robert Mapplethorpe American, 1946–1989 Thomas, 1987 Gelatin silver print Image: 48.8 x 48.8 cm (19 3/16 x 19 3/16 in.) Jointly acquired by the J. 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, 2011.7.31 © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

2.00a_Fig_22 Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946–89). Banana & Keys, 1974. From Interview 5, no. 11 (November 1975): n. p. Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation.

©Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946–89). Banana & Keys, 1974. From Interview 5, no. 11 (November 1975): n. p. Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation.

1.00a_Fig_08 Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946–89). Self-Portrait, ca. 1973, color Polaroid print. Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

©Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946–89). Self-Portrait, ca. 1973, color Polaroid print. Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

6.01_Fig_03Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946–89). Untitled, ca. 1967, graphite on paper. Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

©Robert Mapplethorpe (American, 1946–89). Untitled, ca. 1967, graphite on paper. Gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Tags: Robert Mapplethorpe