Exhibitions Events Learn Support Books Editions Venue Hire About Visit Eat & Drink Join Today + Share this page Back Yoko Ono: MEND PIECE for London Yoko Ono, Mend Piece, 1966/2018, Broken cups and saucers, thread, glue, tape. Installation view: ‘You & I’, A4 Arts Foundation, Cape Town, South Africa, 2018. Image courtesy the artist. Photo: Kyle Morland. Book now £Free, booking required 25 August 2021 - 2 January 2022 Galleries 5 & 6 Monday Closed Tuesday 11am–6pm Wednesday 11am–6pm Thursday 11am–6pm Friday 11am–6pm Saturday 11am–6pm Sunday 11am–6pm Access Information Exhibition Yoko Ono: MEND PIECE for London 25 August 2021 – 2 January 2022 MEND PIECE for London Mend carefully. Think of mending the world at the same time. y.o. Whitechapel Gallery visitors are invited to respond to this instruction from artist, musician and activist Yoko Ono. On entering Galleries 5 and 6, take a seat at a table on which are placed broken fragments of ceramic cups and saucers and some simple materials for repair – scissors, glue, twine and tape. When you have finished ‘mending’, you can display the results of your efforts along the shelves on the walls. Ono first presented this work as Mending Piece I at her 1966 solo exhibition at Indica Gallery, London, a renowned centre for countercultural art. Titled Yoko at Indica: Unfinished Paintings and Objects, almost every work in the exhibition was designed to be completed through the actions of visitors. Such instruction-based works established Ono as an important figure in the development of both Fluxus and Conceptual art. Her extensive career has since spanned performance, writing, visual art, experimental music and film. A commitment to participation and collaboration has also informed ongoing and tireless campaigns for peace and non-violence. MEND PIECE for London draws on the Japanese tradition of kintsugi, the art of repairing broken pottery using lacquer mixed with precious metals such as gold and silver. The process nurtures breakage as an important part of an object’s history, rather than seeking to disguise it. In this artwork, the physical act of repair becomes a timely metaphor for a different kind of mending which takes place in the mind and through community. Transcript available. Supported by: Ceramics kindly provided by: Burgess & Leigh Ltd @burleighpottery Follow us on Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Subscribe for email updates Supported using public funding by Arts Council England © Whitechapel Gallery 2021 | Terms & Conditions | IFS | Technical help Contact us