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Honors for the world's great artists
The sky had been cloudy in the City of Bridges, and the air a bit cool, but on the afternoon of June 6, the sun shone bright and warm, as if to join in celebrating Yoko Ono and John Baldessari receiving the Golden Lion for Life achievement award, presented as part of the Venice Biennale
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The sky had been cloudy in the City of Bridges, and the air a bit cool, but on the afternoon of June 6, the sun shone bright and warm, as if to join in celebrating Yoko Ono and John Baldessari receiving the Golden Lion for Life achievement award, presented as part of the Venice Biennale. There were other special mentions and awards, including for Ming Wong from Singapore (Special Mention), and Nathalie Djurberg in the category of young artists.
For those from Asia who were present, particularly from Japan and Singapore, these were exciting moments. Yoko Ono, petite and at 76 forever supple in her movements, with a voice that disguises her age, had earlier in the day, at Teatro Piccolo in the Arsenale, passionately called for everyone in the world to "cover the Earth with Love and Peace".
"Say it to everyone, *I love you'," she implored.
For much of the world, the name Yoko Ono is inextricably linked to that of John Lennon - and indeed always will be. How could it be otherwise? Together they moved the world with their music and acts for peace, freedom and love in the world. At the Arsenale, Ono made it a point of reference.
However, today she is honored as an artist in her own right. In fact, for more than 50 years Ono has been a prominent fixture in the realm of avant-garde and experimental art. She played a critical role in movements such as Fluxus, Happenings and Conceptual Art. But her contribution has never really been recognized by the world. John Lennon once said Ono was the world's most famous unknown artist. In fact, when she and Lennon first met, she was already a prominent avant-garde artist and musician, whose most significant work was Cut Piece, in 1964, a feminist performance in which she invited members of the audience to cut the clothes from her body. It is also little known that she was the first female student to be accepted into the philosophy course at prestigious Gakushuin University in Japan.
Ono's work in the Venice Biennale in the Giardini shows Instruction Paintings, a set of simple typed directions that are hung on the wall in a manner akin to a traditional painting installation. There are selections of text, such as that in the Sun Piece - "Watch the sun until it becomes square" - or The Shadow Piece: "Put your shadows together until they become one". At Palazzo Tito, Ono's exhibition "Anton's memory" may reflect her life experiences and the sufferings of other women, with fragments of female bodies made of marble placed in wooden boxes. The meticulous drawings of organic forms like a uterus further stand in blatant contrast against the naked metal bed frame holding only a small pile of sheets and a black bible. These pieces leave no doubt in the viewer's mind that Yoko Ono is indeed a great artist.
Another emotional moment in the awards presentation was when Ming Wong from Singapore was called to the stage. In his relatively short career, Ming Wong has attracted the attention of the contemporary art world through his peculiar way of translating foreign cultures by playing the part of every character in his plays. But for the Venice Biennale, he has turned director, rather than performing. He revealed that his next piece will be in Italian, a language he does not have a good command of, in which he will once more take on the roles.
This year's Venice Biennale with its manifold modes of art and mix of national origins, is shaping up to be perhaps the most extraordinary so far, raising the question of whether national pavilions will be relevant in the future. The same goes for gender participation, as the 53rd Venice Biennale has an unprecedented proportion of women artists, with about 50 percent female participation (except for the 51st biennale when the curators were women). While national or regional pride and the issue of gender participation may soon be something of the past, for now the honoring of Yoko Ono and Ming Wong and the participation of works by women artists mark a fascinating evolution in the value system of art.
