Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation was established by Robert Mapplethorpe on May 27, 1988, the year before his death, to protect his work, to advance his creative vision and to promote the causes he cared about. Serving as the first president on its board of trustees, he established mandates of furthering the recognition of photography as an art form having the same respect as painting and sculpture and supporting AIDS and HIV medical research.