A Guest Post (and Photos) By Geoffrey Dicker
Mention Yoko Ono’s name and chances are you’ll get a reaction. For many people, she’s still remembered more for the myths that surround her than for her art — whether it’s the persistent claim that she broke up The Beatles or strong opinions about her famously experimental music.
The Broad’s Music of the Mind, the first major museum retrospective of Ono’s work in Los Angeles, does an excellent job of moving past those preconceptions. Instead, it invites visitors to experience her as one of the most inventive conceptual artists of the last century, revealing an artist whose ideas have been far more influential than many people realize.
As you wander through the exhibit, you can’t help being impressed by the volume of work Ono has produced, the diversity of her art (photos, videos, music, sculptures, conceptual works, etc.) and the underlying theme of world peace, which is evident in most of her work.
Her art was designed to not only make the viewer think, but also to be interacted with.
For example, in Painting to Shake Hands (Painting for Cowards), a hole was punched through a canvas which encourages viewers to have a unique, interactive experience with the work. In a world where you are often told to obey a list of rules before getting near the art, it was very refreshing to be able to interact with art in a fun way.
If you chose, you can recreate the infamous “bagism” which John Lennon mentions in lyrics to the song “Give Peace a Chance.” Bag Piece gives the viewer a chance to put on a black translucent bag, and experience the world from the inside out. By covering your face, you are stripped of your race, sex and identity. You are just a spirit or soul. Even though this work was conceived over 50 years ago, it’s just as important today.
One of my favorite works from Yoko Ono has always been her 1964 book Grapefruit, a conceptual art book that features ideas to transform your world.
Beatles fans will recognize her 1966 work Ceiling Painting (Yes Painting), an interactive artwork requiring viewers to climb a ladder, look through a magnifying glass suspended from the ceiling and discover a tiny writing that simply says “yes.” This piece was the impetus for John Lennon meeting Yoko. Please note: at The Broad, you are not allowed to climb on this work.
Shadow Piece (1963) encourages the viewer to trace their shadows on a canvas “until they become one.” My friend Sark, who toured the exhibit with me, drew my shadow onto the canvas.
Painting to Hammer a Nail (1961) asks the viewer to add something to the canvas until it’s filled up, at which point the painting ends. People attached money, receipts, stickers, airline boarding passes, etc. to the canvas.
I added my business card!
White Chess Set (Play it by Trust) (1966) encourages museum goers to play a game of chess with all white pieces, which makes it impossible to differentiate between opposing players. A couple of guys were playing and this normally competitive game was very civil.
Add Color (Refugee Boat) (1960 / 2019) started off as a white boat in a white room, but as the exhibition has progressed, viewers are encouraged to add their own designs to the room with blue or white markers that are provided. This ever-changing work looked really cool and is quite reminiscent in theory of Yayoi Kusama’s Obliteration Room project, which I saw when I lived in NYC.
A Piece of Sky (2001) is a room full of army helmets filled with puzzle pieces, reminding the viewer that we are all part of each other
The exhibit wraps up with a display of all of Yoko’s album covers, and a room where you are encouraged to write a message to your mom. Reading some of these messages proved to be unexpectedly moving. Just outside the museum in the adjacent plaza, you are invited to write a ‘wish’ on small paper tag and hang it from one of the trees!
If you walked into the exhibit thinking, “Yoko – oh no!” you will surely walk out of Music of the Mind saying “Yoko – oh yes!”
Yoko Ono: Music of The Mind Continues Through October 11, 2026 at The Broad Museum, Located at 221 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012.