give peace a chance

Few things are more worthy of our imagination than world peace.

And few things require more imagination - which is why I love the exhibit, IMAGINE: The Peace Ballad of John & Yoko, at the Musée des Beaux Arts.

There is much to praise about the show, beginning with creator Yoko Ono’s intent. The conceptual artist envisioned the expo as both a celebration of the 1969 Montreal Bed-In, and yet another grass roots appeal for peace.  In order for the message to reach as many people as possible, admission is free.

John and Yoko’s Bed-in for Peace was part honeymoon, part Vietnam war protest. The couple arrived at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal on May 26, and stayed for a week - appearing on radio shows, granting TV interviews, and entertaining Timothy Leary and other anti-war populists.

In footage from that week, Lennon is serious, silly, committed, and tired. He encourages alternatives to violence: “Stay in bed and grow your hair,” he says. “Less words, and more peace.”  Their suite at the QE comes alive with his music.

The exhibition recreates the event and the years surrounding it through drawings, unpublished photos, videos, books and films. But nothing takes the viewer back forty years like hearing the soundtrack, with songs by Lennon.

There are several participatory elements, including the opportunity for visitors to record their own bed-in, and share the photos and videos on the museum website.

Visitors can play “Imagine” on a replica of Lennon’s white piano, stamp “Imagine Peace” on maps of the world, and read works by Nobel Peace Prize winners in the Peace Library

Free films about John and Yoko, including “Gimme Some Truth: The Making of John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ Album,” will be shown throughout the month of May.

The message is still timely and universal, and even businesses are helping spread the word - a number have offered their services in association with the expo, free of charge.

In a press conference promoting the show, the still youthful looking Ono insisted that when it comes to creating world peace, “each person has an incredible power.” It’s ironic that in this world of viral marketing, we need to be reminded that we can each make a difference.

If you go:  Montreal Musée des Beaux Arts, 1380 Sherbrooke Ouest, open T-F, 11-5 (W until 9); Sat Sun 10-5.  Until June 21, 2009.

Photograph courtesy Christine Sawyer.