Photo by Nina Westervelt

Legendary singer-songwriter Patti Smith performed a special concert as part of NY PopsUp on Mar. 9 at the Brooklyn Museum. The performance served the purpose of honoring the late artist Robert Mapplethorpe on the anniversary of his death; the iconic photographer died in 1989. The event kicked off at 12:30 p.m. ET and was open to museum employees. The performance was also broadcast on the festival’s Instagram page.

Patti Smith has had a prolific career as a musician, author, and poet. She first found stardom during the New York City punk rock movement, when she released her 1975 debut album Horses. Her New York Times best-selling memoir Just Kids documents her partnership with Mapplethorpe. 

NY PopsUp is an unprecedented and expansive festival featuring hundreds pop-up performances meant to intersect with the daily lives of New Yorkers, as explained by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. The festival is an ongoing public event that began on Feb. 20 and will continue through Labor Day. The event aims to revitalize the emotional wellbeing of quarantine-fatigued New Yorkers as well as breathe life into the state’s struggling entertainment sector. Due to the event’s impromptu nature, not all performances will be announced in advance. Additional information on NY PopsUp can be found here.