Selby Gardens tabs Patti Smith as Artist in Residence

Patti Smith just can’t quit Sarasota.

The famed poet and rock star played her second show at Selby Gardens on Thursday night and announced that she will have a relationship with the institution going forward. Smith will become Selby Gardens’ first Artist in Residence, and she’ll return once in 2023 and once in 2024 for a performance and for private time soaking up inspiration.

Smith and her former lover and friend Robert Mapplethorpe are the subjects of an exhibit at Selby Gardens entitled “Flowers, Poetry & Light,” which runs through June 26.

Smith toured the exhibit in February and played a show at Selby Gardens to commemorate it.

Jennifer Rominiecki, president and CEO of Selby Gardens, said she was thrilled to have Smith serving as an ambassador.

“Patti Smith is recognized worldwide for her revolutionary mergence of artistic disciplines — especially poetry and rock,” said Rominiecki in a press release.

“All of us at Selby Gardens are deeply honored that she has accepted our invitation to be our very first Artist in Residence.”

Smith, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007, spoke at length about her formative relationship with Mapplethorpe during her February performance, and she said she regretted that he wasn't there to appreciate it with her. 

“I was just a little sad that Robert couldn’t see this,” she said of the multimedia exhibit that combines photography, music and floral displays. “I think we really would’ve had fun, and he would’ve also been very moved at all of the effort on so many levels.”