Oh there you are, Tuesday. Nice to see you again. As promised, I wanted to post about a great book I read this weekend called
"Just Kids", written by Patti Smith, she of the androgynous arty rocker
thing. The book is all about her friendship with Robert Mapplethorpe, he of
angelic good looks and provocation and shockingly stunning photography. This book spoke to me louder than most. Needless to say, I couldn't put this
tome down, even though my eyelids were fluttering in the hopes of shutting
them, I simply had to stay awake as I hung on every word. I admit I have
never been a huge fan of Patti Smith's music, though I found her rumpled,
jolie laid boyishness a big style influence. (Look at that portrait of her
in the white shirt shot by Mapplethorpe. Sheer and utter fashion gold). Though never a huge Patti Smith fan, I have always loved Mapplethorpe's
work, for its sheer ballsiness (sometimes literally) and arresting sexuality
and delicate beauty all at once. Their relationship, as you can imagine, was
"complicated", but they could not have created the work they did without
each other. And the book is set in that magic time in New York of the early
70s, when one could still be a starving artist and actually believe it was
possible to make anything happen, with frequent nights at Max's Kansas City
and a residence at the Chelsea Hotel peppered in for divine inspiration.
It's an amazing journey of friendship and passion and the need for a muse.
Great read on the lives of two great artistic spirits. I've been doing a bit of spiritual dabbling lately, in the form of a
macrobiotic diet. I decided to do this as I've been feeling out of balance
physically- not just heavy but really sluggish and yuck and have decided I
needed to be more mindful about food. I bring this up not so you can pity me
as I prepare food suited for an episode of "Locked Up Abroad", but to
reference this weekend's read as well. Macrobiotic eating is all about the
yin and yang of things- and Patti and Robert were too. In terms of humanity,
I would say chicks are more yin, while men are typically more yang. (soft
vs. hard, quiet vs. aggressive, etc.) So Patti was yin to Robert's yang-
thus creating a perfect storm of balance in fucked up New York City in the
1970s. And to take it one step further, Patti's androgyny was at once BOTH
yin and yang, and Robert's angelic curls and kindness coupled with some
graphic depictions of sex were both yin and yang too. It felt cool to read
this book as I began to think about balance in general, and what it means.
And if you are someone that creates for a living, you should embrace both
sides of the equation too, or find someone to vibe with who balances you.
That's really what it's all about. I can only recommend this fabulous book
about love, friendship, passion, art, and dedication. It's bittersweet
(Mapplethorpe died of AIDS in 1989 at the age of 43), but a wonderful
glimpse into the lives of two artists who have no choice but to suffer for
who they are and what they need to be. That in itself is very Buddhist,
right? (Or Jewish. For what is life without suffering?) I just wanted to share with you how much I loved this book- fab read about
two very cool souls. The jury is still out on the diet, though. And that's what's up this Velvet Underground, Pandora channeled Tuesday in
the MIA. Have a balanced day. XO
"Just Kids", written by Patti Smith, she of the androgynous arty rocker
thing. The book is all about her friendship with Robert Mapplethorpe, he of
angelic good looks and provocation and shockingly stunning photography. This book spoke to me louder than most. Needless to say, I couldn't put this
tome down, even though my eyelids were fluttering in the hopes of shutting
them, I simply had to stay awake as I hung on every word. I admit I have
never been a huge fan of Patti Smith's music, though I found her rumpled,
jolie laid boyishness a big style influence. (Look at that portrait of her
in the white shirt shot by Mapplethorpe. Sheer and utter fashion gold). Though never a huge Patti Smith fan, I have always loved Mapplethorpe's
work, for its sheer ballsiness (sometimes literally) and arresting sexuality
and delicate beauty all at once. Their relationship, as you can imagine, was
"complicated", but they could not have created the work they did without
each other. And the book is set in that magic time in New York of the early
70s, when one could still be a starving artist and actually believe it was
possible to make anything happen, with frequent nights at Max's Kansas City
and a residence at the Chelsea Hotel peppered in for divine inspiration.
It's an amazing journey of friendship and passion and the need for a muse.
Great read on the lives of two great artistic spirits. I've been doing a bit of spiritual dabbling lately, in the form of a
macrobiotic diet. I decided to do this as I've been feeling out of balance
physically- not just heavy but really sluggish and yuck and have decided I
needed to be more mindful about food. I bring this up not so you can pity me
as I prepare food suited for an episode of "Locked Up Abroad", but to
reference this weekend's read as well. Macrobiotic eating is all about the
yin and yang of things- and Patti and Robert were too. In terms of humanity,
I would say chicks are more yin, while men are typically more yang. (soft
vs. hard, quiet vs. aggressive, etc.) So Patti was yin to Robert's yang-
thus creating a perfect storm of balance in fucked up New York City in the
1970s. And to take it one step further, Patti's androgyny was at once BOTH
yin and yang, and Robert's angelic curls and kindness coupled with some
graphic depictions of sex were both yin and yang too. It felt cool to read
this book as I began to think about balance in general, and what it means.
And if you are someone that creates for a living, you should embrace both
sides of the equation too, or find someone to vibe with who balances you.
That's really what it's all about. I can only recommend this fabulous book
about love, friendship, passion, art, and dedication. It's bittersweet
(Mapplethorpe died of AIDS in 1989 at the age of 43), but a wonderful
glimpse into the lives of two artists who have no choice but to suffer for
who they are and what they need to be. That in itself is very Buddhist,
right? (Or Jewish. For what is life without suffering?) I just wanted to share with you how much I loved this book- fab read about
two very cool souls. The jury is still out on the diet, though. And that's what's up this Velvet Underground, Pandora channeled Tuesday in
the MIA. Have a balanced day. XO
