November 4th was Robert Mapplethorpe's birthday, Patti Smith told audiences in New Haven today at a series of special events at Yale. These sessions included a master class on visual art and influences (see below), a discussion about her early life and advice for the young (with tea!), a film screening of the Steven Sebring documentary about her, "Dream of Life," with a Q and then, the finale: a reading from her book about the pair and their lives around Pratt and then in the Chelsea Hotel, "Just Kids," which included three live songs. She said it was his birthday party. This day is also the day her husband, Fred Sonic Smith of MC5 died in the Nineties. Funny how these things happen. Today was also the release date of the "Just Kids" book in paperback, with 16 new pages added. This post is far shorter than it deserves to be, because words cannot describe the day. A few take-aways follow. Required reading: Rimbaud, Little Women, Alice in Wonderland, Moby Dick, 2666, William Blake... Required looking: Lewis Carroll, Julia Margaret Cameron, Willem de Kooning, Warhol, Duchamp, Picasso, Steichen, Sander, Modigliani, Brancusi, William Blake... Advice: Drink plenty of water, recycle, everything in moderation, be in charge of your whole image and your books/exhibitions, including all aspects of design and pr. "In art and dream may you proceed with abandon. In life may you proceed with balance and stealth." -Patti Smith Go get the book:http://www.harpercollins.com/books/Just-Kids-Patti-Smith/?isbn=978006621... And see the film: http://www.dreamoflifethemovie.com/
