The Ara Pacis Museum in Rome hosts the final instalment of the trilogy of exhibitions dedicated to Robert Mapplethorpe’s photography, curated by Denis Curti. And if you’d like to learn even more, check out the podcast hosted by Nicolas Ballario

Until 4 October 2026, the Ara Pacis Museum in Rome will host Robert Mapplethorpe. Le forme della bellezza, the final instalment in the trilogy of exhibitions curated by Denis Curti, promoted by Marsilio Arte, and focusing on key themes of the American photographer’s artistic philosophy. After the classical ‒ the focal point of the exhibition at the Stanze della Fotografia in Venice ‒ and desire ‒ analyzed by the show at the Palazzo Reale in Milan ‒, beauty guides the Roman exhibition narrative. Approximately two hundred photographs accompany the public on a journey of discovery through the subjects Mapplethorpe chose to shape his visual imagery, which encompasses the three-dimensional collages and assemblages of his early career, portraits of figures such as Yoko Ono, Robert Rauschenberg, David Byrne, Richard Gere, and muses Patti Smith and Lisa Lyon, self-portraits, flowers, the sensuality of male and female bodies, and formal references to ancient statuary.
The exhibition in Rome features a selection of photographs taken by Mapplethorpe during his stays in Italy, between Capri and Naples. He was invited by his gallerist Lucio Amelio to participate in Terrae Motus, following the 1980 earthquake in Irpinia, along with more than sixty colleagues including Warhol, Kiefer, Kounellis, Pistoletto, Schifano, Schnabel, Twombly, and Vedova. The images shed light on the photographer’s connection with our country and establish a further dialogue with the museum and classical statuary.
The exhibition’s focus on the artist is enriched by the podcast Mapplethorpe Unframed, available on all major platforms and hosted by Nicolas Ballario as part of on Art. L’arte legge il mondo, the format created by Marsilio Arte to interpret the present through art. Set against the backdrop of the counterculture of the 1960s and 1980s, the podcast explores Mapplethorpe’s work in relation to contemporary society, featuring guests from various disciplines ‒ such as Carlo Antonelli, Francesca Alfano Miglietti, Tommaso Sacchi, Angela Vettese, and Alessia Glaviano. Speaking during the final episodes of the series are Agostino Iacurci, Rossella Farinotti, Franco Noero, Pierpaolo Falone, Angelo Crespi, Marta Giani and Ettore Molinario.

INFO
Robert Mapplethorpe. Le forme della bellezza
until 4 October 2026
MUSEO DELL’ARA PACIS
Via di Ripetta 180, Rome
https://www.arapacis.it/

https://www.marsilioarte.it/mostre-ed-eventi/onart/