The acclaimed artist and widow of John Lennon is now 92 and prefers to live out of the spotlight
Yoko Ono has been living out her final days “in a happy place” quietly “listening to the wind and watching the sky” according to her family.
A new book released this week profiles the acclaimed artist and widow of John Lennon for her work as an activist and promoter of peace, as well as being a co-writer of Lennon hit Imagine.
But the final chapter confirms she is now a reclusive figure at 92 living on a 600 acre farm in upstate New York with son Sean and daughter Kyoko visiting her so she never needs to go far.
Paying tribute to her mother in the book, Kyoko said: “She believed she could change the world, and she did…now she is able to be quiet – listen to the wind and watch the sky.”
The woman who spent her life advocating peace has now seemingly found some herself. Kyoto added: “She is very happy, in a happy place. This is well deserved and genuine peacefulness.”
READ MORE: Yoko Ono hits out at the Beatles for not standing up for her as she reveals death threats
Son Sean also uses the biography called ‘Yoko by David Sheff’ to praise his mother and the way she fought against adversity.
Sean, who is now in charge of the families interests in the Beatles estate, said: “She had this ability to overcome difficulty with positive thinking. She really wanted to teach the world to do that. She taught my dad to do that. It’s not going to stop a moving train or a bullet. But I think there’s something profound about it. And I think it affected the world.”
The book also paints a portrait of Yoko, from her birth to wealthy parents in pre-war Tokyo and harrowing experiences as a child during WW2 to her arrival in the avant-garde art scenes of London, Tokyo and New York. Her relationship and marriage with John Lennon would also have a huge impact on the rest of his life and The Beatles.
In 2020, the Mirror revealed Yoko appeared to have stopped working completely and has handed many of her business interests over to her son Sean. In October 2020 Sean Yoko Lennon was appointed a director at eight companies linked to Yoko and the Beatles including Apple Corp.
One of her last public appearances was in 2017 when the National Music Publishers’ Association presented Yoko Ono with their Centennial Song Award.
On Stage she said: Thank you. “I’ve learned so much from having this illness. I’m thankful I went through that,” but did not specify what illness she had suffered with.
The song award was for Imagine and on stage a clip of Lennon was played saying Yoko should have a co-writer credit on the hit as the “lyric and concept” came from her. Execs then gave her a second award for herself and she said “This is the best time of my life”.
Up until around that point she was still performing music live and also attending art shows and working on art herself.
Sadly though, Yoko did not feel well enough to attend a Tate Modern retrospective of her work in London last year which was a huge success.
In the foreword to the catalogue for Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind, the Tate director Karin Hindsbo said: «We offer our deepest and most heartfelt gratitude to Yoko Ono, for the gift of her expansive and transformative practice, which continues to resonate with and unite people around the world, and which, like a wish or a whisper, touches each one of us.»
Works on show included the ‘Yes Ladder’ from 1966 which is one of the reasons John Lennon became fascinated by Yoko.
In the original work you climb a stepladder and hold a magnifying glass to the ceiling to see the word ‘Yes’ written down in tiny letters.
Lennon saw the work at her show in 1966 was «so positive» afterwards. He added: «I felt relieved. It’s a great relief when you get up the ladder and you look through the spyglass and it doesn’t say ‘no’ or ‘f**k you’ or something, it said ‘yes’.”
John and Yoko first met in November 1966 at that London gallery, when Yoko was preparing for an exhibition of her work. Lennon liked the work and they instantaneously connected and began a whirlwind, and at times controversial, romance.
They married in March 1969 and soon after the Beatles broke up with Yoko getting a lot of the blame for this from fans. She and John would then work together on a number of projects including music and a peace movement. After his death she continued to promote peace and also held art exhibitions around the world and released music and played live shows well into her Eighties.
Her conceptual artwork continues to be exhibited around the world which speak for her in many ways, promoting ideas of peace, feminism and urging people to use their imagination and dream.
* Yoko by David Sheff is out now, published by Simon & Schuster UK.
