A toned athletic body and remote gaze have signaled elite masculine beauty and sexual allure for thousands of years. Discover with educators Shelby Brown and William Zaluski the social and sexual contexts of posed and perfected classical nude sculptures, and explore their ultimate influence on the nude and portrait photography of Robert Mapplethorpe. Course fee $35. Complimentary parking.
Sunday, April 17, 1:00–4:00 p.m.
Getty Center: Boardroom and Museum galleries
Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Medium
March 15–July 31, 2016Getty Center
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Self-Portrait, 1980, Robert Mapplethorpe, gelatin silver print. Jointly acquired by the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; partial gift of The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation; partial purchase with funds provided by the J. Paul Getty Trust and the David Geffen Foundation. © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation
Robert Mapplethorpe is among the most influential visual artists of the late twentieth century. This major retrospective exhibition reexamines the arc of his photographic work from its humble beginnings in the early 1970s to the culture wars of the 1990s. Featuring portraits, nudes, still lifes, and the controversial X Portfolio, the exhibition explores Mapplethorpe’s studio practice and the creation of his foundation, which has shepherded his legacy into the 21st century.
Drawn from the landmark acquisition from the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, two complementary presentations, one at the J. Paul Getty Museum and another at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, highlight different aspects of the artist’s complex oeuvre.
Support for Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Medium and its international tour has been provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art. The Getty Museum’s presentation is sponsored by Sotheby’s.
Related Events
COURSES
Culinary Workshop: Biting the Big Apple
Travel back to the New York art scene of the 70's and 80's. Hear stories from Studio 54, The Factory and Max’s Kansas City; then tour the exhibition with Maite Gomez-Rejon of Artbites before preparing food and drink inspired by Vogue food writer Maxime de la Falaise and the musicians, artists, and fashion icons of the day. Course fee $95. Complimentary parking. Tickets available beginning Tuesday, May 3.
Thursday, June 2, 10:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m. Repeats Friday, June 3.
Getty Center: Private Dining Room
TOURS
Curator’s Gallery Tour
Paul Martineau, associate curator of photographs, the J. Paul Getty Museum, leads a gallery tour of the exhibition. Meet under the stairs in the Entrance Hall.
Thursday, April 7, 2016
Getty Center: Museum galleries
Exhibition Tour
This tour provides an overview of two photography exhibitions: Robert Mapplethorpe’s classic and controversial work and the historic and contemporary photographs collected by his lover, Sam Wagstaff. Meet at the Information Desk.
Tuesday–Sunday, May 3–July 31, 2:30 p.m.
Getty Center: Museum galleries
PERFORMANCE
An Evening with Patti Smith
Join renowned singer-songwriter, poet, and visual artist Patti Smith for a unique performance exploring her extraordinary friendship with celebrated photographer Robert Mapplethorpe through the many songs, poems, and stories she’s written over the years inspired by their artistic bond. Tickets $25, available for purchase starting at 9 AM on Tuesday March 15; 4 ticket limit per person.
Saturday April 30th, 2016, 7 PM, doors at 6:30 PM
Getty Center: Harold M. Williams Auditorium
LECTURE
Mapplethorpe's Extravagance
Robert Mapplethorpe combined a sense of luxuriant decoration with cosmopolitan, cutting-edge sexuality. Richard Meyer, professor of art history at Stanford, links Mapplethorpe's extravagance to the flamboyant visual pleasures of the physique magazines on which his earliest work drew, the photographs he and Sam Wagstaff collected, and the posh interior of his Manhattan loft.
Learn more and get tickets.
IRIS GETTY BLOG
AUDIO: Patti Smith on M Train
When Patti Smith met Robert Mapplethorpe in the epochal days of New York City in the late 1960s, they formed a deep friendship that permeated their art and community.
MOBILE TOURS
Explore the themes of Robert Mapplethorpe’s work featured at the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Join GettyLink for free Wi-Fi during your visit. Go to www.Mapplethorpe.LA on your smartphone.
PUBLICATIONS
Publications are available in the Getty Museum Store, by calling (310) 440-7333, or online at shop.getty.edu.
Robert Mapplethorpe: The Photographs
Paul Martineau and Britt Salvesen
With essays by Philip Gefter, Jonathan D. Katz, Ryan Linkof, Richard Meyer, and Carol Squiers
Robert Mapplethorpe: The Archive
Frances Terpak and Michelle Brunnick
With essays by Patti Smith and Jonathan Weinberg
Gallery Text
Read and download the gallery text that accompanies this exhibition in PDF (10 PP, 1 MB).
Exhibition Checklist
RELATED EXHIBITION
The Thrill of the Chase: The Wagstaff Collection of Photographs
In 1984 Mapplethorpe's lover and patron, Samuel J. Wagstaff, sold his vast photo collection to the J. Paul Getty Museum. This exhibition presents a selection of Wagstaff's collection, encompassing both masterpieces of the medium and obscure works worthy of attention.
March 15–July 31, 2016
Getty Center
Image Credit: Butterflies, 1935, Man Ray, carbro print. The J. Paul Getty Museum. © Man Ray Trust ARS-ADAGP