M
Michael McClure
Beat Poet, Playwright, Essayist & San Francisco Counterculture Leader
Read MoreJohn Michell
New Age influencer & Writer
Read MoreRobert Mapplethorpe
Photographer
Read More
Nicky Samuel meets Robert Mapplethorpe and Patti Smith in New York, October 1969
And then two more of Sandy Daley’s friends arrived. ‘Robert! Patti! So here you are! Let me look at you! Nigel [Waymouth], Nicky, this is Robert Mapplethorpe and this is Patti Smith.’
They were so extraordinary and yet so alike, that at first I thought they must be twins. Both were thin and gaunt – Patti had tiny hips, and virtually no bust. Both wore black jerseys and black trousers – Robert’s extremely tight, and made of leather. Both wore ear-rings. Both had long, black hair. Robert was handsome; while Patti had a stunningly beautiful face.
‘Are you staying here at the hotel?’ I asked her.
‘No – but we’ve found a two-roomed apartment above Horn & Hardart just down the road. Oh my God! Last night we were living in Brooklyn. And now we’re here!’
Having had just flown all the way from London, this didn’t seem like a very big change to me; but I soon realised that for Robert and Patti moving across the East River was the most significant move they had ever made in their lives. Patti told me that Robert was a sculptor. She had a job at Scribner’s, the book-store on Fifth Avenue, to keep them in funds; and in her spare time she was writing and drawing. ‘And what do you write?’ I asked nervously.