Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A stunning collection of photographs from Frank Stefanko featuring the Godmother of Punk herself, iconic musician-turned-author Patti Smith.
"Frank always shot your internal life. He let your external imperfections show. His photos had a purity and poetry; there was some humor..." --Bruce Springsteen
Patti Smith was a favorite photographic subject for Frank Stefanko during his college years. "Patti had jet-black hair and pale blue eyes that could see right through you. When I visited New York, I started photographing Patti, I was captivated by her look . . . tall, thin, with porcelain skin, sharp features, and those piercing eyes. With me, in terms of portraits, it's always the eyes first, then the rest of the face comes into view."
Patti Smith came to prominence during the punk rock movement in the 1970s, with her highly regarded 1975 debut album, Horses. She has been called "punk rock's poet laureate" because of her feminist sensibilities and intellectual approach to her music. As a result, she is one of rock and roll's most influential female musicians, and according to Rolling Stone, one of "The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time."
Synopsis
A stunning collection of photographs from Frank Stefanko featuring the Godmother of Punk herself, iconic musician and author Patti Smith.
"There I was sitting in a booth at the co-op of Glassboro State College, a bucolic school in the farmlands of South Jersey. . . Suddenly, the double doors of the co-op swung open and standing there in the vacuum created was an incredible apparition, a vision in a white leather coat with long, jet-black hair flowing down her back. She moseyed in like the bad guy walking into a saloon in an old western movie. This was the first time I set eyes on Patti Smith, and I was captivated."
So begins Frank Stefanko's wonderfully personal photographic tale of his friendship and artistic collaboration with Patti Smith. Stefanko's photographs and his warm, personal recollections show us an amazing young woman, long before she became Patti Smith, the cultural icon. Through images and words, we follow her search for a unique voice--from the early days of the Chelsea Hotel to spoken word at the St. Mark's Poetry Project to the release of her seminal album, Horses, and so much more.
These photographs, along with the Stefanko's first-hand account, capture an incredible era from the mid-1960s to the late- 1970s when a whole new genre of music and art was being born. Prior to the release of this collection, many of these stunning portraits had never before been published. They appear here in high-quality quadratone reproduction, highlighting Stefanko's artistry and his uncanny ability to capture his subject's inner spirit. Memorabilia from Smith's personal collection adds to this rare and intimate look at the emergence of one of America's most respected artists.
With an opening poem from Patti Smith that sets an evocative mood, an introduction by Lenny Kaye, Smith's longtime guitarist, and a compelling afterword by editor Chris Murray, this book sets the reader on a journey from small-town New Jersey and highlights the enigmatic artist's triumphant career.