Robert Mapplethorpe

Orchid and Hand

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About this artwork

A rather thin, bony hand, severed from the rest of its body, is stretched out horizontally, holding a bizarrely shaped orchid. The uneasy relationship between the hand and orchid can be felt but not explained. In this respect it is similar to the way that Man Ray and other surrealist photographers created unsettling juxtapositions between objects and bodies.

Updated before 2020

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  • artist:
  • title:
    Orchid and Hand
  • date created:
    1983
  • materials:
    Gelatin silver print on paper
  • measurements:
    37.30 x 37.50 cm (framed: 64.40 x 61.70 x 3.80 cm)
  • object type:
  • credit line:
    ARTIST ROOMS National Galleries of Scotland and Tate. Acquired jointly through The d'Offay Donation with assistance from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and Art Fund, 2008
  • accession number:
    AR00229
  • gallery:
  • artwork photographed by:
    Antonia Reeve
This artwork is part of Artist Rooms
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Robert Mapplethorpe

Robert Mapplethorpe