The works of two quite different artists are now on show at Modern Art Oxford. Polaroids: Mapplethorpe gives us a chance to view the early instant photography of the late Robert Mapplethorpe, which offers a compelling insight into the celebrated and controversial photographer’s formative years.

The exhibition of 92 Polaroids, selected from a body of more than 1,500, provides a fascinating record of Mapplethorpe’s artistic identity. Who would have thought that such remarkable studies could have been captured spontaneously on such a basic little camera known only for its ability to deliver an instant photograph? The secret to the quality of the shots appears to rest with the lighting effects and Mapplethorpe’s uncanny ability to capture the ordinary and turn it into something quite extraordinary.

Two chairs side by side, a clenched fist, a close-up shot of a mattress and a pair of boots are no longer mundane seen through the lens of his camera – each intimate study demands attention. Portraits of lovers and friends, followed by his early attempts at photographing the nude form are equally compelling; each has signature elements of Mapplethorpe’s later work. The portraits include pictures of Helen Marden, Sam Wagstaff, Marianne Faithfull and Patti Smith (pictured).

Silke Otto-Knapp: Present Time Exercise, in the Upper Gallery, is the first major exhibition of this German-born artist who gets her inspiration from living in London.

Unusually, Otto-Knapp works in watercolours and gouache on canvas, rather than paper. However, by using canvas she can repeatedly build up and then dissolve the surface to obtain a remarkable subtle finish created from layers of diluted pigment. Her reworking of the pictures layer by layer, creates works of great translucency and delicacy, further enhanced in more recent works by the use of silver and gold pigments.

Although her works were displayed at Tate Britain as part of the Art Now series in early 2005, this is Silke Otto-Knapp’s first exhibition in a public gallery in the UK and certainly one not to be missed. Silke Otto-Knapp will be in conversation with Suzanne Carter, Senior Curator of Modern Art Oxford, on Friday, September 11, at 6pm.