Greek classical sculptures/ ideal forms
Images and icons:
Mapplethorpe’s pictures and self-portraits are described as ‘photography’s handmade nature’. His images show the history of art and the movement of the muscular body.
‘While we may admire the form, the grace, of a sculpted nude, when we learn its name, say Apollo or Hermes, our comprehension of the significance of the form blossoms to include a narrative that lies beyond the plainly visual’
‘I went into photography because it seemed like a perfect vehicle for commenting on the madness of today’s existence’
‘I have boundless admiration for the naked body. I worship it… sometimes, looking at a model, you think you have found nothing. Then, all at once, little by little, nature reveals itself, a strip of flesh appears, and the shred of truth conveys the whole truth and enables you to rise at a single bound, to the absolute principle of things’ (Mapplethorpe 2004: 47)
ROBERT MAPPLETHORPE AND THE CLASSICAL TRADITION
In Robert Mapplethorpe’s book ‘Robert Mapplethorpe and the classical tradition’ he focuses on images from around the 16th century of Greek classical structures and sculptures of men but also women. The people in these images are very muscular, which when taken in the 16th century it is not something that you would think everyone would be interested in looking like. Also these images from the 16th century raise questions as to whether this is why people nowadays have been so interested in going to the gym and getting them self the ‘perfect/ideal’ body that they want. When going through the book most of the images are from the late 16th century in part of the book but parts are also of Robert Mapplethorpe’s images which he has taken of body builders, most of which are of the body builders naked, from different angles. In these images it shows the different muscles of the body builders. Some of the images are portraits of the bodybuilders or of different people, these images show the faces of the bodybuilders. Most of Robert Mapplethorpe’s images he is trying to replicate the images from the late 16th century to show the human physique.
