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Robert Mapplethorpe

Self-Portrait, 1980

Description

Maker

Title

Self-Portrait

Year

1980

Medium

Gelatin silver print

Materials/Techniques

Materials

Supports

Dimensions

Image: 35.9 x 35.9 cm (14 1/8 x 14 1/8 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Original--on verso, in copyright stamp.

Identification

Edition

6/10

Type

Credit

Museum purchase: gift in celebration of Houghton P. Metcalf, Jr.'s 75th Birthday from his friends

Object Number

1996.97

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Facing Artists

February 27 - July 31, 2009

Robert Mapplethorpe’s classically composed, pristinely lit, and impeccably printed photographs of nudes, portraits, and still lifes have been both greatly admired
and controversial. With his direct gaze, coiffed hair, and leather jacket, Mapplethorpe here aptly portrayed himself as a rebel. Best known for bringing gay male
sexuality into mainstream art, his work set off the “culture wars” over censorship, freedom of expression, and the role of government arts funding when, in 1989,
just months after his death, the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, canceled a traveling exhibition of his work, fearing criticism because tax dollars were
used to fund it.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in Copyright. This object is Self-Portrait with the accession number of 1996.97. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.