The two things that constantly inspired me were books and travel. Patti Smith More Quotes by Patti Smith More Quotes From Patti Smith Polaroid by its nature makes you frugal. You walk around with maybe two packs of film in your pocket. You have 20 shots, so each shot is a world. Patti Smith pocketstwoworld Fate is like a secret friend that helps push you on into life. Patti Smith fatesecrethelping I immersed myself in books and rock 'n' roll, the adolescent salvation. Patti Smith rock-n-rollrocksbook I'm old-fashioned. I think William Blake and people in the Renaissance people were multi. Look at da Vinci, he was involved in science; and Michelangelo was dabbling in poetry. Both of them were painters and sculptors but they also involved themselves with architecture. I honestly don't know what happened in the '60s and '70s. If you sang rock and roll in America at that time or were involved in expressing yourself through music like that, then many thought you couldn't possibly be an artist. That thinking is archaic. Patti Smith rocksartistthinking I dreamed of having a book of my own, of writing one that I could put on a shelf. Patti Smith shelveswritingbook I like my time on earth. And no matter what kind of cards I've been dealt, I'm happy to be there. Patti Smith time-on-earthmattercards When we got to the part where we had to improvise an argument in a poetic language, I got cold feet. "I can't do this," I said. "I don't know what to say." "Say anything," he said. "You can't make a mistake when you improvise." "What if I mess it up? What if I screw up the rhythm?" "You can't," he said. "It's like drumming. If you miss a beat, you create another." In this simple exchange, Sam taught me the secret of improvisation, one that I have accessed my whole life. Patti Smith simplefeetmistake We all make choices. Believe me, I would like to write the hit of the world. It's not like I have any desire to be in the shadows. My vision isn't marketing. Some people want to sell 6 million albums. There's nothing wrong with that. It's just not what I do. I'd rather look at a piece of work and say it's great rather than it's successful. Patti Smith successfulwritingbelieve Ms. It sounds like a sick bumblebee, it sounds frigid. I mean, who the hell would ever want to stick his hand up the dress of somebody who goes around calling herself something like Ms.? It's all so stupid. Patti Smith stupidmeanhands If I have any regrets, I could say that I'm sorry I wasn't a better writer or a better singer...When I was younger, I felt it was my duty to wake people up. I thought poetry was asleep. I thought rock 'n' roll was asleep...An artist may have burdens the ordinary citizen doesn't know, but the ordinary citizen has burdens that many artists never even touch. Patti Smith regretartistsorry I started thinking what could happen with my art and I realized that the biggest thing that could is that it winds up in a museum. It's like finding a rare animal and putting it in the zoo. Patti Smith animalzoosart I'm okay with roaming around the world in my bunk for days on end. Maybe every third day I'll get a shower or stumble out at dawn and realize I'm in a field in Poland. I like that kind of life. Patti Smith roaming-arounddawnworld Please, no matter how we advance technologically, please don't abandon the book. There is nothing in our material world more beautiful than the book. Patti Smith acceptancebeautifulbook Sometimes you write passages that don't need to be rewritten. Performance is that for me. Improvisation, things that happen in the moment, are sometimes wonderful, or wonderful as a moment to be shared between performer and people, but that's it. There might be a strong bond between you and the people, a transformative night, but as a live record it might not translate. Patti Smith strongwritingnight You can't carve up the world. It's not a pie. Patti Smith pieworld Hopefully if you create something fine, people will relate to it, so you're communicating with people, and you're not in a void. On the other hand, because you're always creating and transforming, art always separates you - always. Patti Smith creatinghandsart I have seen a lifetime of transgender people and it was hard enough being gay in the '50s and early '60s. One couldn't imagine the cruelty that trans people had to face back then. Patti Smith gayfacespeople The film [Dream of Life] doesn't hide anything, except maybe moments of sorrow or darkness that belonged to me. Patti Smith sorrowdarknessdream I know I'm a strong performer. I'm not an evolved musician. Patti Smith performersmusicianstrong I didn't begin my life in 1975 with 'Horses.' I recorded 'Horses' in 1975, but was drawing in Paris in 1969. Patti Smith parishorsedrawing
