Editor’s Note: This is an excerpt from Yoko, a new biography about Yoko Ono from author David Sheff. It releases March 25 from Simon and Schuster.
On September 14, 1966, there was an announcement in the International Times of an exhibition of “Instruction Paintings” by the “Japanese-born American artist Yoko Ono” at Indica Gallery, 6 Mason’s Yard, St. James, London, co-owned by artist John Dunbar.
The exhibition, “Unfinished Paintings and Objects by Yoko Ono,” included pieces that Yoko had shown in the past as well as new work. There was a Painting to Be Stepped On and an Add Colour Painting, which consisted of white wood panels meant to be painted on by visitors (brushes and cans of paint were nearby on a white chair). Eternal Time, set on a pedestal, was a version of Clock Piece that had a ticking second hand but no minute or hour hands. Sky TV was a closed- circuit TV that “brought the sky” into the gallery (a skyward-facing camera was set up on the roof). Painting to Shake Hands (Painting for Cowards) was built from the instructions “Drill a hole in a canvas and put your hand out from behind. Receive your guests in that position. Shake hands and con- verse with your hands.”
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Yoko created a chess set with a completely white board—that is, all the squares were white—and all white pieces. It was displayed on a white table with a pair of white chairs. (She later changed its title, White Chess Set, to an instruction: Play It by Trust, and in 1987, Yoko sent a Play It by Trust set to US president Ronald Reagan and to Mikhail Gorbachev, general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The meaning of the piece was less whimsical at the time of the Cold War with its message: War is futile; we’re all the same, and we have to trust each other to achieve peace.) A piece called Forget It was a sewing needle. It was realized through the instruction in the title. “Once I give the instruction ‘Forget it,’ you can never forget it,” Yoko explained. Mending Piece 1 was a broken teacup “to be mended in your mind,” one of many mending pieces she created that were inspired by the Japanese art of kintsugi, repairing broken ceramics with gold or other metals to celebrate rather than hide imperfections. This version was a broken porcelain teacup displayed alongside a tube of glue. The instructions for a later version of Mend Piece explained the work: “You are supposed to mend the cup. You might think you’re just mending a cup, but you’re actually mending something within you.”
Helped by Tony, art students, and gallery assistants Dunbar had recruited, Yoko worked on these and other pieces until, on November 7, 1966, she was putting finishing touches on the show, readying for the opening the following day.
A few days earlier, Dunbar had run into John Lennon and told him about an exhibition he was staging at Indica. He mentioned Yoko’s Bag Piece—people would be getting into a huge bag and doing . . . whatever they wanted. John took Dunbar up on the invitation to visit the gallery and showed up at Indica the night before the opening of Yoko’s show. She wasn’t happy that Dunbar had let someone in early. What’s he doing? she thought.
Courtesy of Simon and Schuster
“The place wasn’t really opened, but John Dunbar, the owner, was all nervous, like, ‘The millionaire’s come to buy something,’” John recounted. “He’s flittering around like crazy. Now I’m looking at this stuff. There’s a couple of nails on a plastic box. Then I look over and see an apple on a stand—a fresh apple on a stand with a note saying ‘Apple.’ I thought, you know, This is a joke, this is pretty funny. I was beginning to see the humor of it.
John asked Dunbar, “How much is the apple?”
“Two hundred pounds.”
“Really? Oh, I see. So how much are the bent nails?”
Then Dunbar brought Yoko over and introduced her to John. John was waiting for something to happen—an event, the bags he’d been told about. “Where’s the people in the bag, you know? All the time I was thinking about whether I’d have the nerve to get in the bag with whoever. You know, you don’t know who’s gonna be in the bag.”
He finally asked, “Well, what’s the event?”
In reply, Yoko handed him a card that said “Breathe” on it.
John said, “You mean—” and he panted.
Yoko said, “That’s it, you’ve got it.”
I’ve got it! John thought.
John turned his attention back to the apple on a stand. He grabbed it and took a bite. Yoko was shocked and upset. The piece was about the cycle of life—the apple would rot and eventually disintegrate. It hadn’t occurred to her that someone might take a bite out of her sculpture. Though she was miffed, she was also impressed by his audacity.
Author David Sheff
Courtesy of David Sheff
John wanted to do something. He saw a ladder leading up to the ceiling where there was a spyglass hanging down.
„Ich ging die Leiter hinauf und holte das Fernrohr und dort war winzige kleine Schrift [an der Decke].“ Als du am oberen Ende der Leiter balanciertest und durch das Vergrößerungsglas an die Decke schautest, konntest du in winziger Schrift das Wort ja lesen.
Dieses winzige Ja beeindruckte John. „Nun, alle sogenannte avantgardistische Kunst zu der Zeit und alles, was angeblich interessant war, war alles negativ, dieses Klavier-mit-einem-Hammer-zerschlagen, die Skulptur-langweilig-brechen, negatives Zeug. Es war alles gegen, gegen, gegen. Gegen-Kunst, gegen-Establishment. Und nur dieses ‚ja‘ ließ mich in einer Galerie voller Äpfel und Nägel bleiben, anstatt einfach rauszugehen und zu sagen, ‚Ich werde keinen von diesem Mist kaufen‘.“
Die Nägel, auf die sich John bezog, waren Teil eines anderen ausgestellten Stücks, Malen, um einen Nagel zu schlagen. Diese Version eines Stücks, das Yoko fünf Jahre zuvor erdacht hatte, war eine weiße Holztafel, die an der Wand hing. Ein Hammer hing an einer Kette und es gab eine Dose Nägel auf einem Stuhl unterhalb des Bretts. John fragte, ob er einen Nagel in das Holzstück hämmern könnte, aber Yoko sagte nein. Yoko scherzte später darüber: „Es ist so symbolisch, verstehst du – das jungfräuliche Brett – für einen Mann, einen Nagel einzuschlagen.“ Dunbar sah Yoko scharf an und sagte: „Lass ihn einen Nagel einschlagen.“ John beobachtete später, dass Dunbar wahrscheinlich dachte: Er ist ein Millionär, er könnte es kaufen. Aber Yoko war mehr daran interessiert, wie es aussah, als es zu verkaufen. Yoko und Dunbar berieten sich und schließlich wandte sie sich an John und sagte: „Okay, du kannst für fünf Schilling einen Nagel einschlagen.“
„Nun, ich gebe dir fünf imaginäre Schillinge und hämmere einen imaginären Nagel ein,“ konterte John.
„Und das war, als wir uns wirklich trafen“, sagte er. „Das war, als wir uns in die Augen sahen und sie es verstand und ich es verstand.“
…
Die Indica-Ausstellung eröffnete wie geplant, mit einem frischen Apfel, der den von John hineingebissen hatte, ersetzte. Eine glitzernde Menge schöner Menschen strömte durch die Galerie, inspizierte die Werke und folgte Yokos Anweisungen. Draußen gab es eine Party in der Mason’s Yard.
Die Indica-Show blieb zwei Wochen lang stehen, während derer Yoko die Galerie die meiste Zeit besuchte und oft Veranstaltungen inszenierte, einschließlich Bag Piece, bei dem sie und Tony und andere in Taschen stiegen. (John verpasste seine Chance, aber später würde er in die Tasche steigen.)
„Die Show hat viel Spaß gemacht, hat aber kein Geld eingebracht“, sagte Dunbar. „Kein einziges Stück wurde verkauft.“