John Giorno’s Half-Century on the Bowery

2015-04-03T12:24:00-04:00

222 Bowery is an Italian-inspired palazzo for the beggars.

JULIE EARLE-LEVINE writes about the artist John Giorno’s home for over fifty years in Bowery.

"The address housed New York’s first Y.M.C.A. in the 1880s — in what was then one of the worst neighborhoods in Manhattan, frequented by prostitutes and alcoholics. Much has changed since the poet, performer and painter moved in 53 years ago and created a haven for artists: It’s where Mark Rothko painted the Seagram murals and one of the spots where Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns hung out. Giorno and Andy Warhol were lovers there, from 1962 to 1965; Giorno starred in several of Warhol’s movies, including “Sleep.” William S. Burroughs lived there, too — he moved into the building in 1966, and to “the bunker,” now Giorno’s kitchen and meditation room, in 1975. “I never intended to live my life in this building, but somehow that happened.”

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John Giorno’s Half-Century on the Bowery