Dear Shaded Viewers,
Twenty five years after his death, the Grand Palais has given Robert Mapplethorpe his first retrospective in France. 250 works of art express his obsession for beauty and perfection. Robert Mapplethorpe died of AIDS in 1989.
One room is for adults only and puts Mapplethorpe's obsession with back rooms and S &M on display. In the 70's and 80's some of his photos were considered shocking because of their content. I remember going to a retrospective of his at the Whitney and a little girl,no more than 8 was standing in front of his iconic photo of a close up of a black mans dick coming out of his trouser zipper while wearing a suit, the child's reaction was one of amazement. She was with her mom so it was clearly ok for her to be there but I imagine that image left quite the impact at such an early age.
When you look at the work of Mapplethorpe on one hand you see references of Edward Weston and on the other hand those of Genet and Cocteau.
Later,
Diane
Robert Mapplethorpe Grand Palais, 3, av. du General Eisenhower 75008 until July 13th
