Melody by Edward Mapplethorpe & Patti Smith

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Edward Mapplethorpe, a native New Yorker, began his solo career in 1990 and was quickly acclaimed for his fine edged luminous nudes, portraits, and still lives. However, it was the artist’s innovative work underwater (Undercurrents, 1992-94) that first distinguished him as a unique talent in bridging the gap between photography and abstract painting. Mapplethorpe continued to push the boundaries of black and white traditional photography and in 2007, a solo exhibition in New York featuring the TimeLines series showcased his most ambitious project to date. These works elucidate the artist’s formal exploration of line by combining the gestural impulses of action painting with non-camera techniques. TimeLines, along with the subsequent series TimeZones, traveled to Berlin, Germany (2008) and Rome, Italy (2009). New work by the artist will be exhibited in New York in spring 2011.

Patti Smith, rock icon/singer/writer/visual artist, was a highly influential figure in the punk rock movement of the 70s and became one of the most important poet/songwriters of her generation. She retired from the public eye in 1979 to raise her two children with her husband Fred “Sonic” Smith in Detroit. Since her re-emergence as a performer and artist in the late 90s, she has been the recipient of a multitude of restigious awards. In March 2007, Smith was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In January 2008, the documentary by Steven Sebring, “Dream of Life: the movie” premiered at the Sundance Festival and continued to receive awards at various film festivals worldwide. In September 2010, her memoir, Just Kids, was awarded the Non-Fiction Book of the Year by the North Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association. http://www.pattismith.net/souvenance.html

Proceeds will be donated to Friends In Deed -- The Crisis Center for Life-Threatening Illness.

Friends In Deed, founded by Mike Nichols and Cynthia O’Neal in 1991, has helped transform many thousands of lives through a wide array of free programs and services. Friends In Deed provides emotional and spiritual support for anyone diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other life-threatening physical illnesses. Support is also available for family, friends, and caregivers of those who are ill, and anyone dealing with grief and bereavement. 

MELODY by Patti Smith

her voice was like her name
and when one pointed this out
she would laugh a laugh
equally melodious.
she was an artists model
so white shouldered
ermine hair, brow
that one saw
black.
a patent pump
erect in snow
she was tho
just a girl
who dreamed
when seven
of riding
a Spanish mount
as white as she was
in the center of
a thick swarm
of bees
and slip from
their cloud
unscathed
in a field
of queen annes
lace
like a great
embroidered cloth
on the table of god
and having said her grace
partake of nothing but honey lent by
the gifted swarm. So enthralled by her
they left behind a coat, a sweet veneer
that left her throat capable of a voice
one could only describe by a name.