Irises
Mapplethorpe’s portraiture straddles modern aesthetic and stylistic standards, Art Deco silhouettes and western classicism.
Robert Mapplethorpe
New York, 1989
Robert Mapplethorpe was an American photographer of portraits and celebrity portraits, nudes and still-life images, working exclusively in black and white. Mapplethorpe is best known for his controversial interpretations of the gay BDSM subculture in late-20th century New York. He photographed an impressive list of celebrities, including Andy Warhol, Louise Bourgeois, Deborah Harry, Kathy Acker, Richard Gere, Peter Gabriel, Grace Junes, Amanda Lear, Laurie Anderson, Iggy Pop, Philip Glass, David Hockney, Cindy Sherman, Joan Armatrading and Patti Smith, who was Mapplethorpe’s longstanding roommate. Other subjects included flowers, statues and children.
Mapplethorpe’s portraiture straddles modern aesthetic and stylistic standards, Art Deco silhouettes and western classicism. In his still lifes, the latter rings true. His Irises (1986), Mapplethorpe fuses the pleasing symmetry of the urn-like vase with the floral blooms of the irises, which in turn fan-out to give the impression of an occasional floral display. The composition is disrupted by a slant of light from a window, striking the centre and edging briskly out of the frame on the left-hand side.