Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald & F. Scott Fitzgerald
Zelda and Scott's marriage was plagued by ego, passion, alcoholism and mental illness. Without which it is arguable that they would have left such a mark on the world. Their love was legendary. Zelda with her talent, beauty and unflinching personality served as muse to almost all of Fitzgerald's literary heroines. They had one daughter Scottie, who was raised by nannies before being sent to boarding school. The two died within four years of each other on opposite sides of the country. Scott in his home in Los Angeles from a massive heart attack. Zelda in a fire while locked in a room awaiting electro-shock therapy treatment at the mental institution where she was being treated for schizophrenia.
Patti Smith & Robert Mapplethorpe
Patti and Robert were true soul mates in the purest sense of the term. Patti's amazing book Just Kids recalls with honesty and sweet nostalgia the remarkably beautiful story of their relationship. They acted as lover, muse, best friend, confidant, supporter, brother, sister, savior and catalyst in their decades long friendship. The two successfully navigated the 1970's New York City art world, becoming friends with the city's art, music and literary legends of the time. Theirs was a relationship that cannot be defined by a single term or label. Mapplethorpe came out of the closet while in a serious, long term romantic relationship with Smith. The revelation did not end the relationship. Instead it simply shifted its shape. They did not play by the rules of others. Their genuine love and admiration for one another was unshakable. Each, at different periods sacrificed their own ambitions and voluntarily worked as sole breadwinner in order to support the other's art. Mapplethorpe as a prostitute, Smith as a bookstore clerk. They inspired and pushed each other to advance creatively in profound ways. Without one another we may not have ever known their names. Mapplethorpe tragically lost his life to AIDS in 1989 after receiving fame in the art world for his provocative, beautiful and sometimes obscene photography. And Smith...well we know what became of her.
