Abstract
By most of mainstream culture, Yoko Ono is perceived as the wild and weird artist who ultimately broke-up the Beatles. To the contrary, it was Ono’s very eclectic and creative mind that engendered conceptually innovative works of art. These pieces showed society how to love and join together to create a world without loneliness, and how to live as one harmonious global culture. How does an individual influenced by so many art movements merge with the state-of-mind Ono found herself in in order to create such powerful works of art? Such an individual could only be constructed by deep pain, lived experience, and the desire to turn that pain and experience into art that could change the world. By synthesizing many documents written about the artist, interviews between Ono and journalists, and the historical context of WWII, this paper explores and interprets the many inspirations behind Ono’s work. From her lavish but tragic family life, travel between Japan and the United States, and the terror of WWII, Ono emerged as an artist who longed to spread peace and love to everyone despite the scrutiny she often received. Though many artists become shaped by the world that currently surrounds them, in this particular case, Ono experienced these events first-hand and used them to help others rather than dwell in sorrow.
