A stunning, richly illustrated book of essential wisdom—covering Tai Chi, mindfulness, creativity, and the art of living and dying from rock icon Lou Reed, edited by his wife the artist Laurie Anderson.

THE ART OF THE STRAIGHT LINE
by Lou Reed
edited by Laurie Anderson
HarperOne, March 2022

Many of us will remember the late Lou Reed as an iconic rock musician and lead singer of the Velvet Underground, but few of us are aware of Lou’s other great passion, the one that he carried up to his final days and moments of his life: the martial art of Tai Chi. During the last decades of his life, Reed studied directly under Master Ren Guang-Yi, a champion of Chen Tai Chi. He was so influenced by his practice that he released an album in 2008 that he wrote specifically to be listened to while training Tai Chi, entitled Hudson River Wind Meditations. Now, mindfulness meets martial arts in this beautifully designed book edited by his wife, acclaimed artist Laurie Anderson. Through both prose and photography, it offers us a glimpse into Reed’s physical, mental, and spiritual journey. Drawn from exclusive interviews and conversations with his fellow students, teachers, and friends including Julian Schnabel, Iggy Pop, Darren Aronofsky, and Lou’s celebrated teacher Master Ren Guangyi, this truly unique book is a gift for rock and roll fans and seekers of wisdom, insight and inspiration alike.

Lou Reed was a musician, singer, songwriter, and poet, inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame twice. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a legendary solo career that spanned five decades. He passed away in 2013.
Laurie Anderson was the wife of the late Lou Reed. She is a highly acclaimed musician, visual artist, composer, poet, photographer, filmmaker, vocalist, and instrumentalist. She lives in New York, NY.