This morning at 10 a.m., in partnership with Creative Time, 21c Museum Hotel Durham hoisted the sixth public artwork in the nationwide Pledges of Allegiance series, IMAGINE PEACE by multi-media artist Yoko Ono.
The IMAGINE PEACE flag is inspired by a concept developed by Yoko Ono and her late husband John Lennon, who dedicated their lives and careers to tireless work as peace activists, beginning with their 1973 proposal of “Nutopia,” a world without borders. Since its inception, Ono has manifested IMAGINE PEACE in over 24 languages, as billboards, posters, newspaper advertisements, badges, tweets, and countless other media, to share this message of peace with the global community.
This flag continues Ono’s ever-growing peace campaign, a movement that in this current political climate — and a world at war with its neighbors — is now more timely than ever. Institutions across the country will raise this flag in solidarity, and in recognition that the world can and should change. We must begin by imagining peace.
As part of 21c’s partnership with Creative Time, a new artist-designed flag will be installed at 21c Durham on the same day the flag is raised at Creative Time headquarters in New York City and at other partner sites throughout a six month period.
In a gesture of solidarity, the flag will be raised simultaneously at the following fourteen locations in partnership with eleven institutions: Creative Time headquarters at 59 E 4th Street in New York, NY; University of South Florida Contemporary Art Museum in Tampa, FL; Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) in Detroit, MI; Herbert F Johnson Museum of Art at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY; KMAC Museum in Louisville, KY; RISD Museum at Rhode Island School of Design in Providence , RI; Ferrovia Studios in Kingston, NY; California College of the Arts in Oakland, CA; Seminary Park in Bloomington, IN; City Hall in Bloomington, IN; Rosehill Cemetery in Bloomington, IN; The Commons, in partnership with the Spencer Museum of Art, University of Kansas in Lawrence, KS; Texas State Galleries at Texas State University in San Marcos, TX; and 21c Museum Hotel in Durham, NC. Ono’s flag will fly for the remainder of the month before being replaced by the next Pledges of Allegiance flag.
> Learn more about the project
Image: 21c Museum Hotels presents IMAGINE PEACE, by Yoko Ono, part of Creative Time’s Pledges of Allegiance. Pledges of Allegiance was originally conceived by Alix Browne and developed in collaboration with Cian Browne, Fabienne Stephan, and Opening Ceremony.
ABOUT YOKO ONO
Yoko Ono is a multi-media artist working in performance, instruction, film, installation, music, and writing. A forerunner in conceptual art involving collaboration, audience participation, and social activism since the early 1960s, Ono challenges viewers’ understanding of art and the world around them.
ABOUT CREATIVE TIME
Creative Time, the New York based public arts non-profit, is committed to working with artists on the dialogues, debates, and dreams of our time. Creative Time presents the most innovative art in the public realm, providing new platforms to amplify artists’ voices, including the Creative Time Summit, an international conference convening at the intersection of art and social justice.
Since 1974, Creative Time has produced over 350 groundbreaking public art projects that ignite the imagination, explore ideas that shape society, and engage millions of people around the globe. Since its inception, the non-profit organization has been at the forefront of socially engaged public art, seeking to convert the power of artists’ ideas into works that inspire and challenge the public. Creative Time projects stimulate dialogue on timely issues, and initiate a dynamic experience between artists, sites, and audiences.
