Entitled, "GLIMPSE", the Cranbrook exhibit included over 20 conceptual instructions for Paintings from the 1960s which had never been exhibited outside of Japan, 10 recent paintings, 5 Weight pieces (Mind / Scales), a large version of Play It By Trust (1991) (see IK #54 for photo of Yoko and Sean seated at this piece), 17 objects from the Family Album-Blood Objects series (1993), the large installation, Endangered Species: 2319-2322 (1992), the installation of Bastet - bronze cats (1989-1990), the participation piece Patches of Blue (1993) and Hiroshima (1993). Roy Slade, Director of Cranbrook Academy of Art Museum and President of the Art Academy: "The exhibit is a tribute to Yoko's considerable abilities and innovative imagination which has enriched so many over the years. Yoko is not only a remarkable artist, but a sensitive individual, both creative and caring. It is a pleasure to welcome her back to Cranbrook."

GLIMPSE ran from September 29 to October 31, 1993.

A FAMILY AFFAIR

IK! was invited to Yoko's lecture to the students on Monday, September 27, as well as to the reception to meet the artist in the museum on Tuesday, September 28. We were also fortunate enough to be given a time slot to interview Yoko after the lecture.

The lasting impression I came away with after viewing the installations and speaking with Yoko, as well as sharing the experience with my brother, nieces and friends, is that the GLIMPSE show was really about families. Families who care about each other, families in crisis, the Global Family.

ENDANGERED SPECIES

(Endangered Species: 2319-2322 (1992) © Yoko Ono)

Seeing the Endangered Species exhibit installed is much more enlightening than just reading about it. My impressions from having read bits and pieces about Endangered Species was that Yoko had given up hope - that her bronzed family, which has melted down after a nuclear holocaust and which is wearing numbered body tags, represented the last family on an Earth that had been destroyed.

What you learn, though, upon closer inspection of this incredible work, is that Yoko's family has actually been excavated in the years following a terrible nuclear war - and we see, with the help of their life projection photo collages on the walls surrounding them - what each member of the family was thinking about or doing at the time of death.

The father is reaching to protect his family, the mother is holding the daughter's hand. Yoko told Annmarie Erickson in an interview in the Cranbrook Journal that her idea for Endangered Species came to her when she was walking around Pompeii. The plan was to simply fast-forward to the 90's to a family that would be excavated in a new age. After Peace 100. After peace. Not exactly a pessimistic viewpoint. Yoko: "I wanted to show that when we are excavated we will see that there was a very touching side of the human race."

A FAMILY ALBUM: BLOOD OBJECTS

This installation has caused some controversy among Beatle fans who have latched onto the shirt and eyeglasses as replicas of John Lennon possessions. However, if you view the entire exhibit, you realize that these are ojbects that could be found in any home, along with coat hangers, a hairbrush, a table setting, baseball bat, clock, perfume bottle and a few other household objects.

These blood-splattered objects are disturbing reminders that there are families in crisis. We read about violent family fights and murders in the newspaper, but they don't show the everyday household objects that have been turned blood red in the pain and violence of the moment. That moment is brought out into the open in Yoko's Blood Objects exhibit, as one views the red-soaked items on their pristine glass pedestals. Suddenly, the reality of our violent society is brought into clear focus as we imagine the horror of what must have happened to the people sitting at the bloody table, gazing into the broken mirror or checking the clock one last time before the end comes slamming down.

(Family Album-Blood Objects: Exhibit P: Mirror (1993) © Yoko Ono)

Yoko was asked by Annmarie Erickson if the items selected for Blood Objects had any special significance and Yoko replied, "I was very careful about covering all different angles, such as the invasion of violence into the home...There's child abuse. Women are abused. Men are victims of violence as well. I wanted to define that too."

Family Album / Blood Objects is a stunning collection, not for the timid of heart or narrow of mind. It's also important not to take one or two items out of the context of the grouping. Yoko's text for the Family Album reads: "The history of the Family of Man is the true history of violence. We are all victims of its cruelty." y.o. June 1993."

PLAY IT BY TRUST

The large version of Yoko's famous Play It By Trust all-white chess set was on view at Cranbrook. In its own room (with other pieces hanging on the walls surrounding the installation) this work is truly an impressive challenge for the Global Family. Standing at one end of the table, looking down the rows of 10 all-white chess sets and the tall-backed chairs which seem to be standing at attention, 10 on each side of the table, one can picture 20 leaders of countries around the world sitting across from each other, forced to trust each other to make their moves fairly.

THE FAMILY OF BASTET

A work that is hauntingly beautiful and captivating is Bastet. These precision groups of Egyptian cats with glowing eyes seem to be standing guard duty - a family of cats protecting Yoko's family, ever vigilant and alert, as only cats can be. A truly mesmerizing piece and my personal favorite.

Jamaica, who is 12, was excited at the prospect of attending an important event like this and meeting Yoko. So was her teacher. Apparently, the teacher is a fan and was so impressed that Jamaica was about to meet Yoko Ono at an art show, that she let her take the day off school with no make-up homework, providing she filed a report about the show. Kaitlin, the 8-year-old, was happy to be coming to the show as well, but my brother thought she was more excited about seeing her Uncle Tom and Aunt Marsha than meeting Yoko. Jamaica was more aware of who Yoko is and the significance of the event.

It was enjoyable watching the children's reactions as they viewed the various pieces. Jamaica was impressed with the Weight Objects / Mind Scale. The Blood Objects were disturbing to her - she's old enough to know what the violent pieces represented and was worried that the exhibit would give her nightmares. Kaitlin, on the other hand, asked my brother why anyone would spill red paint on such a pretty table setting. No nightmares waiting in the dark for her!