“If I had been born one or two hundred years ago, I might have been a sculptor, but photography is a very quick way to see, to make sculpture.”
—Robert MapplethorpeAcross all of his subject matter—from portraits and still lifes to nudes and sex pictures, Robert Mapplethorpe leaned into classical artistic convention and sensibilities in pursuit of perfection. With its concise composition and the stark contrast of the white marble against the deep black background, the combination of sculpture and photography in Apollo underscores Mapplethorpe’s interest in blurring the traditionally demarcated lines between media.
This image is reproduced on the cover of Robert Mapplethorpe, released on the occasion of the first American museum retrospective of his work at the Whitney Museum, New York, in 1988, a year before his death. A version of the image also appears in Mapplethorpe's copyright credit reproduction limitation stamp.
