Stars were first shown at Mapplethorpe's solo exhibition at Robert Miller Gallery in 1983 alongside other wall based sculptures. In The New York Times, Andy Grunsberg wrote "Besides the implications of their carpeted surfaces, these minimalist shapes are suggestive of patriotic symbolism."

Mapplethorpe is not usually categorized as a sculptor but sculptural thinking is central to nearly all of his work. Even when working with photography, he approached subjects as if they were sculptural objects — carefully arranged, lit, and balanced in space..

In the late 1970s and 1980s, Mapplethorpe collaborated with craftspeople and designers to create frames, presentation objects, and installations that blurred the line between photography and sculpture. Stars, reflects that sculptural sensibility. The star forms are wall-mounted reliefs with soft carpeted surfaces rather than purely flat graphic symbols. Their spacing, shadows, and physical presence are part of Mapplethorpe's interest in clean contours, symmetry and the sensual qualities of surfaces.