Robert Mapplethorpe

Discover three of the biggest names in modern and contemporary art at Modern One with a series of free ARTIST ROOMS displays in Edinburgh. Experience impactful new displays by Louise Bourgeois, Helen Chadwick, and Robert Mapplethorpe, each offering distinctive and diverse approaches to the ideas of self-expression, identity, and the complexity of our inner life.

The American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe (1946 - 1989) pushed the boundaries of his medium with both his subject matter and innovative techniques. Originally trained as a sculptor, his understanding of the human body in relation to the light which reveals it means that his distinctive style possesses a classical quality that captures the stillness and the sensual qualities of the body in space.

His work was considered controversial for its frequently explicit subject matter, but Mapplethorpe triumphed over legal campaigns testing the right to individual freedom of expression. His work therefore also holds a significant place in the history of artistic struggle to depict the world as it is.