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Robert Mapplethorpe
American • 1946-1989
Biography
After studying drawing, painting and sculpture at the Pratt Institute in the 1960s, Robert Mapplethorpe began experimenting with photography while living in the notorious Chelsea Hotel with Patti Smith. Beginning with Polaroids, he soon moved on to a Hasselblad medium-format camera, which he used to explore aspects of life often only seen behind closed doors.
By the 1980s Mapplethorpe's focus was predominantly in the studio, shooting portraits, flowers and nudes. His depiction of the human form in formal compositions reflects his love of classical sculpture and his groundbreaking marriage of those aesthetics with often challenging subject matter. Mapplethorpe's style is present regardless of subject matter — from erotic nudes to self-portraits and flowers — as he ceaselessly strove for what he called "perfection of form."
Insights
Phillips set the highest price for a self-portrait by Robert Mapplethorpe in 2015 with Self Portrait, 1980, selling for $148,410.
Phillips sponsored the Los Angeles County Museum's landmark 2016 exhibition Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Medium, which also had a complementary presentation at the J. Paul Getty Museum.
The X, Y and Z Portfolios (1978, 1978 and 1981, respectively) frame Mapplethorpe's artistic oeuvre: X his sadomasochistic imagery, Y floral still lifes and Z nude portraits of African-American men.
The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, set up the year before his death, has raised and donated millions of dollars to fund medical research in the fight against AIDS and HIV infection.
"I am obsessed with beauty. I want everything to be perfect, and of course it isn't. And that's a tough place to be because you're never satisfied."
Recent Robert Mapplethorpe headlines, Powered by Articker
3 June 2022 | Financial Times
Robert Mapplethorpe’s flowers of romanticism and rage20 May 2022 | Whitewall
The House of Repossi Unveils Act II with the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation18 February 2022 | Forbes
Robert Mapplethorpe And Patti Smith Together Again At Marie Selby Botanical Gardens In Sarasota, Florida16 February 2022 | Sarasota Magazine
Patti Smith Performs at Selby Gardens and Reminisces About Photographer Robert Mapplethorpe15 February 2022 | Elephant
Time Melts Away in the Flower Portraits of Robert Mapplethorpe
Past Lots
60
Robert Mapplethorpe
Rose
Estimate £15,000 - 20,000
Sold for £21,420
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93
Robert Mapplethorpe
Lisa Lyon
Estimate £4,000 - 6,000
Sold for £5,040
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58
Robert Mapplethorpe
Self-Portrait
Estimate $50,000 - 70,000
Sold for $63,000
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68
Robert Mapplethorpe
Orchids
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $20,160
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72
Robert Mapplethorpe
Bill T. Jones
Estimate $5,000 - 7,000
Sold for $6,300
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74
Robert Mapplethorpe
Flowers
Estimate $15,000 - 25,000
Sold for $44,100
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75
Robert Mapplethorpe
Watermelon with Knife
Estimate $10,000 - 15,000
Sold for $17,640
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77
Robert Mapplethorpe
Ken Moody
Estimate $6,000 - 8,000
Sold for $18,900
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78
Robert Mapplethorpe
Richard Gere
Estimate $4,000 - 6,000
Sold for $5,040
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211
Robert Mapplethorpe
Lydia Cheng
Estimate $25,000 - 35,000
Sold for $31,500
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216
Robert Mapplethorpe
Ada
Estimate $15,000 - 25,000
Sold for $12,600
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217
Robert Mapplethorpe
Maybelle
Estimate $8,000 - 12,000
Sold for $11,340
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218
Robert Mapplethorpe
Orchids
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $27,720
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219
Robert Mapplethorpe
Tulips
Estimate $12,000 - 18,000
Sold for $23,940
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47
Robert Mapplethorpe
Joe, NYC
Estimate $5,000 - 7,000
Sold for $8,190
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115
Robert Mapplethorpe
Lisa Lyon
Estimate £6,000 - 8,000
Sold for £6,300
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48
Robert Mapplethorpe
Raymond
Estimate £7,000 - 9,000
Sold for £7,560
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182
Robert Mapplethorpe
Irises
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $56,700
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183
Robert Mapplethorpe
Orchid
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $39,060
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184
Robert Mapplethorpe
Hyacinth
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $40,320
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187
Robert Mapplethorpe
Ken and Lydia
Estimate $25,000 - 35,000
Sold for $31,500
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188
Robert Mapplethorpe
Ken Moody
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $37,800
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220
Robert Mapplethorpe
Untitled #3; and Untitled #5, from the Ken Moody Portfolio
Estimate $5,000 - 7,000
Sold for $4,788
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47
Robert Mapplethorpe
Holly Solomon (Three Portraits)
Estimate $100,000 - 200,000
Sold for $125,000
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