Readings from Art: Just Kids

I was away in rural climes for a while. Not a lot of art happening out there in nature. It was okay, but I missed the studio and ached for it a little bit. This past weekend I got to put in some quality time. I finished my messing around piece, and discovered I don't like it much. This is it up on the corkboard:

Meh. It worked in pieces, but as a whole it's simply not doing it for me. On to other projects.

While I was away I did one art related thing and read Just Kids. My reaction to it was sort of mixed. First of all, Patti Smith writes in a very strange and sort of stilted tone, which may be artistic and poetic in one light, and offputting in another. So it took a bit to get into. Also I am not that familar with either Mapplethorpe or Smith's work. I know OF it, but don't know it intimately, so that added a dimension of distance for me, particularly because as a portrait of artists, it talks pretty sparingly about the artmaking itself.



In fact, that's probably how best I'd characterize the tone of Just Kids, it's sort of stilted; emotionally, descriptively, etc. A lot of telling where they went and what they did, but not a lot of digging down at the feelings. All these deaths and fights and poverty and bad things and great things happen in the book but Smith shies away from emotion and depth. She tells the what, but not the inner core stuff. Still the feelings leak a little around the edges, more revealed in what she doesn't say.

The thing I thought the most about walking away from Just Kids was how the particular time and place Smith and Mapplethorpe find themselves in is this nexus where things are happening. They're pretty much can't move without tripping over Joplin, Ginsberg and Sam Shepard. Once things start moving in their careers, it gathers steam so very quickly. I think that illustrated pretty crucially why certain places, like New York or LA or London can be very important to the artist or the arts scene. Smith and Mapplethorpe grew as artists in exposure to other artists and they gained a lot of traction by being in a scene that pulled money and attention towards them. Their individual talent mattered as well, but it's important not to discount the advantages of serendipitious timing and location. Just something to ponder.

My favorite essay thus far on Just Kids is Ann Friedman on Girl Genius. She talks about women and being artists very meaningfully, using Smith's text to illustrate her point. It's a great piece.