This is one of the most playful and enjoyable immersive exhibitions to be presented in London.
Drawing on walls, hammering nails on to a canvas, writing a wish on a wish tree or jumping into a cloth bag to create a human sculpture are just some of the ways in which Yoko Ono invites those experiencing her work to use their imagination.
What is so clever about her work (and resulting exhibition at the Tate Modern) is that she doesn’t just simply want people to be impassively looking at it but become active participants as much as they would like. It has a playful and absorbing atmosphere to it that is really quite pleasing and allows us all to draw on our imagination to find the meaning behind the work.
Wondering around this impressive and multimedia filled exhibition, the whole experience is one for the whole senses, filled with serene soundtracks that really capture the attention and highlighting perfectly what Yoko Ono is about as an artist. Her work has a philosophy about it that makes it fascinating to discover – including having on display the full famous 1964 Grapefruit book filled with poetic instructions that you long to carry out.
The point of the exhibition is to let the work speak for itself and the curators have done really well to carry this off – there are fascinating bits of information about the artist herself, but yet she remains a little bit enigmatic which is all the more fascinating. Yes some of the concepts that are on display here can be a little slightly overwhelming and uncomfortable (the video titled ‘Cut Piece’ for example).
As would be expected, the artistic and not relationship side of Ono and John Lennon’s collaboration is focused on – yet it doesn’t overwhelm what she as an artist has achieved. It was touching to see the responses they received from world leaders to whom they sent acorns to help promote the idea of world piece, set close to a film screening their famous Bed-In (which is over an hour long if you have the time to sit and appreciate).
There really is an unhurried vibe to this exhibition which allows the visitor to really linger over the pieces that mean the most to them. In my case this included spending time reading and looking at what people have drawn and written on the walls of ‘Add Colour (Refugee Boat)’ (2016) which seems to have an added poignancy to it in relation to the refugee crisis being faced right now. Or how about writing a wish on the wish trees that are just outside the exhibition, while reading the wishes of others. It is pieces like these that are filled with intimacy and compassion that really reflects what Yoko Ono has been focusing on throughout her career: art can be force as a way in which to bring us all together.
Overall, this is a deeply fascinating and playful exhibition that leaves you wondering what is coming next – and one that is worth visiting over and over again. In this world we are living in at the moment, the theme of hope that exists throughout is infectious.
By Emma Clarendon
Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind is on display at Tate Modern until the 1st September 2024.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐