Monday, August 18, 2008

Wish for the World

I believe that as soon as people want peace in the world they can have it. The only trouble is they are not aware they can get it.John Lennon, 1969

What a great man that John Lennon. The man who can tag the phrase, "All you need is love." has a legacy that is still carried out by his wife Yoko Ono. When you think of Yoko and John it is likely you'll think of world peace, and their desire for it. As stated above, Mr. Lennon believes that visualization of peace is the key to achieving it. This thought turned into the popular installation pieces by Yoko Ono, entitled the Wish Tree. The installation has been recreated in over 80 cities, most recently in Pasadena, CA. Twenty crape myrtle trees were installed in the Courtyard of One Colorado. Visitors are invited to write their wishes on pieces of paper and hang them on the tree branches. Yoko Ono’s Wish Tree for Pasadena is free and open to the public. In just one week, the Wish Tree in Pasadena encountered over 10,000 visitors. Wishes have been added at a rate of over 1200 a day! The installation will be on display and ready for wishes until November 2. Afterwards, the wishes will be removed and shipped to the Imagine Peace Tower, Yoko's memorial tribute to John Lennon. The trees will be donated to Arlington Garden, a community garden in Pasadena.

Ono recently gave an interview with Pasadena News on her installation project.
"This allows people to articulate their wishes," she said. "When people wish for peace, they visualize peace, and when written by hand, it is very powerful."
Ono said she was inspired to create the Wish Trees project from the Japanese practice of tying written positive thoughts onto trees in temple courtyards.

It's inspiring to see artists using their work to spread positive messages. The Wish Trees are not only visually appealing and promote a valuable message, but they bring together a community (over 10000 and counting in just one week) and spread awareness of art. Talk about a warm fuzzy on a Monday morning. Have a nice week.

No comments: