Art couple builds virtual shrine to Yoko Ono

Culture Monster has seen its share of wacky art projects, but this one (via @artnetdotcom on Twitter) certainly qualifies as one of the most bizarre we've witnessed in a while.

A husband-and-wife art team has launched a project dedicated solely to Yoko Ono. Titled "Amerika Wants Yoko," the project consists of a video/text/Web component plus a petition "that merges the fictional with the real," according to the official site. We still can't get the temple bells out of our heads.

As far as we can tell, "Amerika Wants Yoko" is a sincere attempt to garner the legendary artist's attention. Or blessing. Or something. What can we say? This is avant-garde art and all bets are off.

The project is part of a larger effort by the couple -- Mika Johnson and Kaori Mitsushima -- that is called "Amerika: a notebook in three parts." 

-- David Ng

Photo: Yoko Ono. Credit: Jens Kalaene / European Pressphoto Agency

Comments

[Mika Johnson & Kaori Mitsushima]

Dear David,
Both Kaori and I thank you for writing this piece; and just so readers know, our message is stated in the petition; and it is our sincere goal to contact Yoko Ono and ask for her support in raising funds for our first feature film, "AMERIKA: a notebook in three parts." It is an environmentally themed piece which seeks to re-mythologize America, and we have over 25 people from around the world who are eager to begin making it. For those of you who have time to look at the petition, we appreciate your support! Many Thanks - Mika and Kaori

[Donald Frazell]

I can think of few more unimportant people than Yoko O,noh, except in her taking apart the Beatles, who were truly just pop fluff anyway.

She is sorta like the last pick in the NFL draft, Ms Irrelevant, But he gets his fifteen minutes of fame too. Will someone please start the clock on Ms O-no!

For those of us in the real world, not the art one, America has always been a big beautiful, serene, and spiritual land. That those in sheltered and windowless galleries and lofts havent noticed is their issue, they been too busy partying for the last five decades to notice.

FYI The Party is Over.

art collegia delenda est

[MarK]

Songs written by The Beatles are far more and much better than "just pop fluff" - as are, for example, waltzes by Johann Strauss. The compositional quality of their best creations is extremely high and will therefore remain valued and treasured for a very long time. Not recognizing that fact is usually caused by equating light genre with poor quality, which is a typical mistake that is often made by those people that are unaware of their amateurish ignorance in issues connected to serious musical matters. True musicians understand that exceptional quality in music can and sometimes does transcend limitations of genre which is precisely the case with music written by The Beatles.

[Z. Smith]

Shame on you for promoting the worthless, vacuous "Amerika" project. This "artist" couple has absolutely NOTHING new to say and are simply latching on to the name and fame of Yoko Ono.

That they'd been trying -- and failing -- to get Ono's attention for years should be a telling enough fact! Why would she want ANYTHING to do with these parasites? And why would we?

The "Amerika" project is NOT "bizarre" -- it's not even remotely interesting. It's just another exercise in shameless self-promotion that would have made a Fluxus-era Yoko Ono blush.