Yoko Ono: art and protest

The Japanese-American conceptual artist was at some point considered "the most hated woman in America," since she was believed to have contributed to the break-up of the Beatles. Public appreciation of Ono's work has evolved over time. John Lennon's widow has not only preserved his legacy, she has also pursued her own innovative artistic career over the decades.

In 1956, Ono married Japanese composer Toshi Ichiyanagi, apparently against her parents' will. The couple stirred up New York's avant-garde scene until the musician decided to return to Tokyo. Yoko Ono followed him, but their relationship was already over; she was suffering from depression. She then met producer Anthony Cox in 1961.

Cox supported the young artist financially and later became Ono's second husband. They had a daughter, Kyoko Chan Cox, in 1963. However, after she met John Lennon at an art show, she left the child with Cox, who vanished with Kyoko, joining a sect and living in hiding for years. Ono only got to see her daughter again in 1994.

"Half-A-Room" is the name of a 1967 art installation. The work shows various objects of a bedroom cut in half and painted in white. Inspired by the increasingly estranged relationship she had with Cox, the artwork deals with the loss of one's integral identity. Ono's work often features empty spaces, inviting the viewer to complete them.

In 1968, John Lennon and Paul McCartney held apples at the premiere of the film "Yellow Submarine," symbolizing their newly formed company, Apple Corps. Fans saw the woman at Lennon's side as the apple that spoiled the Beatles' barrel. She started getting involved in the band's production process, showing up in the studio, which irritated the other Beatles. Many blamed her for the band's break-up.

John Lennon and Yoko Ono got married in 1969 and they used their honeymoon to protest against wars, holding two week-long Bed-Ins for Peace, one at an Amsterdam hotel and the other in Montreal. That's also where they recorded their most famous anti-war song, "Give Peace a Chance." As a protest, it was ineffectual, but the events remain a memorable demonstration of how Lennon was influenced by Ono.

Yoko Ono doesn't separate art from the rest of her life. The cover of her album "Season of Glass" offers a good demonstration of this. It shows Lennon's blood-covered glasses on the table of their apartment, with New York's skyline in the background. Released six months after Lennon's death, the work deals with Ono's grief.

Julian Lennon (left) is the son John had with his first wife, Cynthia. Yoko always tried to keep him out the picture. She also had a son with John. Sean Lennon (right) was 5 years old when his father was murdered in December 1980. The two Lennon boys both became musicians.

The artist born in 1933 will forever remain "the widow of John Lennon" in the public eye. She now presents her most extensive exhibition of works in a show titled "Peace is Power," held at Leipzig's MdbK museum from April 4 to July 7.