There can be few people that have had so much negative press over the years as Yoko Ono. There was a time when she was blamed for the break up of The Beatles, her art was derided as worthless and she was portrayed as having an unhealthy control over John Lennon. That was the late sixties/early seventies and thankfully times have changed. Despite living in New York Yoko has maintained her links with Liverpool, the city of Lennon’s birth, and much of the enmity towards her has passed since his untimely death in 1980. It is therefore fitting that she has brought the story of her relationship with Lennon here to the city of his birth in an exhibition at The Museum of Liverpool at the Pier Head, close to Andy Edwards statue of the Fab Four.
Located on the second floor, the exhibition is on until 22nd April 2019 and entry is free. You could easily get round in an hour but if you have more time to spare so much the better, you won’t regret it.
Double Fantasy tells the story of John and Yoko life together through a variety of different objects and media. These include hand written lyrics to some of Lennon’s well known songs, their wedding outfits and other iconic items of clothing, guitars, pieces of Yoko’s art work and Lennon’s hard won green card.
Video clips are used well to add context and give their own insights at the time. A while room is used to show a video recording of Lennon performing Imagine at a white piano. It starts in a darkened room and as the song develops Yoko opens shutters to bring light into the room. If you want a real insight into the couples love for each other watch it until the very end.
The walls outside the video space are given over to visitors to leave their own personal thoughts on post-it notes. Some are trivial but many are quite poignant and reveal much about how the couple are perceived today.
I found the exhibition quite moving, something I hadn’t really expected and was quite surprised by. I certainly came away with a much deeper understanding of the depth of their love for each other and how, despite all that was written about them, it endured.
The end of the exhibition deals with Lennon’s murder and its aftermath. There is a chilling statistic displayed near the exit. It speaks loud and clear that John and Yoko’s campaign messages of peace and understanding need to be heard today as much as they were over 50 years ago.
You can get more details of the exhibition by visiting the museum’s website here