Robert Mapplethorpe by Sofia Coppola at Thaddaeus Ropac

Opening this Fri (6.30-8.30pm), is this fresh look at Mapplethorpe’s oeuvre by Sofia Coppola. This exhibition uses the same approach as the show ‘Robert Mapplethorpe: Eye to Eye’, which was curated by American artist Cindy Sherman in New York in 2003, and ‘Robert Mapplethorpe Curated by David Hockney’, which was presented in London in 2005. The idea is to have a contemporary artist bring his or her take on an oeuvre as significant as that of Robert Mapplethorpe’s. Celebrated American director Sofia Coppola selected the images from The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation in New York—with whom the gallery has collaborated for this exhibition. By using rarely seen and little-known images taken by Mapplethorpe, Coppola has created an installation very much in step with her world, and surprises with a thoughtful selection of about 40 works, that focus little on the photographer’s archetypes (the flowers, the nudes…).
Fri 25 Nov-Sat 7 Jan. Tue-Sat, 10am-7pm.
Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, 7 rue Debelleyme, 3rd. M° Filles du Calvaire. 01.42.72.99.00. www.ropac.net/