Yoko Ono: Half-A-Wing Show — A Retrospective
March 14–September 1, 2014
Guggenheim Bilbao
Abandoibarra et.2
Bilbao 48001
Spain
An exhibition of Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt in cooperation with the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
Curators: Ingrid Pfeiffer, curator, Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt; Álvaro Rodríguez Fominaya, curator, Museo Guggenheim Bilbao; Jon Hendricks, curator, Yoko Ono exhibitions
In celebration of Yoko Ono’s eightieth birthday in 2013, the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao welcomes a unique retrospective of one of the most influential artists of our times—a living legend who holds a special place in contemporary art, music and experimental film—Yoko Ono. Half-A-Wind Show — A Retrospective from March 14 to September 1, 2014.
The exhibition, sponsored by Seguros Bilbao, includes nearly 200 pieces throughout the entire third floor of the Museum. Visitors will discover more than five decades of creativity, from the mid-1950s to the present, in the multi-faceted artistic universe of Yoko Ono. The exhibition includes some of her most recent creations, as well as a new version of the installation and performance Moving Mountains.
Yoko Ono (b. 1933, Tokyo) has been recognized as one of the most outstanding avant-garde artists for over sixty years. She is a pioneer in many of the artistic fields to which she has dedicated her life, and is considered to be one of the precursors to conceptual art, film and performance art. She is also a key figure in the music world, having produced numerous albums over the years.
As you travel through the third floor of the Museum, you are led through the artist’s diverse spectrum of mediums used throughout her extensive career: from plastic arts to drawings, poetry, film, music, installations, video and performance art, among others. The heterogeneous shapes and mediums of her work challenge conventional ideas of art and raise questions that are essential to the human existence.
This fascinating journey delves into the main recurring themes and ideas that have driven her career, including her belief in the power of the imagination, her political commitment, her sense of humor and the absurd, her sensitivity to global conflicts, and the role of women in society. Ideas inspired both by her own life and universal questions have driven her to adopt a prominent position at the forefront of movements such as peace and feminism.
Yoko Ono’s work is based on ideas, some of which are manifested in the form of objects, while others remain immaterial, enriched by certain traditional Asian elements. A poetic dimension can often be denoted in her work—a subtle sense of humor and an attitude of social criticism anchored in concepts of unity, trust, and balance.
Yoko Ono’s Instructions are the starting point for many of her pieces; the artist’s verbal and written scores invite viewers to execute both unrealistic and plausible actions, thereby giving the observer an active role in the process, encouraging them to participate and delve further into self-reflection and the mind’s potential.
The word “Participate” that appears next to some of her pieces is Yoko Ono’s direct invitation to interact with her art. Such is the case with En Trance (1998/2013), an architectural installation with a rotating glass door and a beaded curtain that welcomes the public to the exhibition.
Media relations
Guggenheim Museum Bilbao,Dept. of Communications and Marketing:
T +34 944 35 90 08 / F +34 94 435 90 59 / media [at] guggenheim-bilbao.es
All information on the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao at www.guggenheim-bilbao.es (Press Room).
Sponsor: Seguros Bilbao
