Amy died on July 23, 2011 at her London home from accidental alcohol poisoning.
On the day of Amy Winehouse's funeral, as her family and friends gathered at a synagogue in north London, a steady stream of people came to visit the makeshift shrine outside her house in Camden Square.
The memorial left by her adoring fans:
"They were not alone in their distaste. Around the world, people saw the jumble of bottles and cans, half-filled with lurid pink wine and warm beer, and took this as a cruel slight against the woman whose life – and perhaps her death – was defined by drink and drugs."
But I don't think the offerings were meant to be cruel; they were meant to be defiant, a cheeky middle finger up to fate. How odd and hypocritical would it have been if we had pretended that in death Amy Winehouse was something she wasn't in life?
A shrine made of lace pillows and copies of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's poetry might be more picturesque, but would hardly honour the irreverence of a woman who once stopped an interview to say, “Oh – I've gobbed on myself.”
Memorializing Amy: Ashes to ashes, booze and butts - The Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/memorializing-amy-ashes-to-ashes-booze-and-butts/article4182077/
