In 1980, Robert Mapplethorpe met Lisa Lyon, the newly crowned winner of the first World Women’s Body Building Championship . Her muscular form reminded Mapplethorpe of Michelangelo’s treatment of the female body, and by 1983 he produced a collection of photographs titled “Lady, Lisa Lyon” depicting her in nude, full-body portraits, character roles and closeups. The series celebrated the ideals of female beauty stemming from Antiquity to Renaissance while simultaneously drawing inspiration from modern photographers such as Man Ray and Frantisek Drtikol who Mapplethorpe admired and collected. 

In 1982 Mapplethorpe was once again selected to participate in “Documenta 7” in Kassel alongside the young Jean-Michel Basquiat. He chose to exhibit our large “Lisa Lyon” print which was reproduced on a full catalog page and became a critical success. In this tight framing of a flexed arm and a single breast the artist successfully explores the mysteries of female strength and sensuality. A few months after this exhibition the famous art dealer Leo Castelli gave Mapplethorpe his first solo show in his renowned gallery.