Double Fantasy is a special exhibition at Liverpool Museum. I mentioned before that we’ve visited it after having lunch at Castle Street Townhouse last week. The exhibition is free to visit and very interesting, I would recommend it.
The items on display are placed in chronological order and it starts with how they met, at Indica Gallery. At that time both of them were married to other people; later on they divorced and got married. I picked a couple of items to talk about, as highlights. Some of the items are on display for the first time, being from the private collection of Yoko Ono.
The exhibition is very popular, even on a weekday at an odd hour.
One of the things I liked seeing was their wedding attire. There are more memorabilia from the wedding, including an album. Of course, there is an ample description of their honeymoon, as it was the moment they decided to make a political stand against the Vietnam War – Bed-Ins for Peace.
There is the karaoke room, always busy, where visitors can sing different songs. On top of that is the a projection room in which Imagine is played over and over again. Imagine is my favourite song and I loved watching the clip.
But, imagine my surprise, when I read: “The song Imagine was John’s best-selling solo record. It is based around the concept of complete equality, with people free to move wherever they want in the world, a freedom of belief and a classless society.” Really? The first line in Imagine is: “Imagine there’s no heaven”, that is hardly a freedom of belief. The song continues with: “No hell below us/Above us only sky” and “And no religion too”. For me, Imagine is a song about peace and acceptance, a plea for the people, to let go of the myths that make them kill each other: religion, toxic nationalism, and greed.
I had no idea they had so many issues with the US government and even feared for their lives at one point. I also loved reading about the acorn for peace campaign. The exhibition also deals with his death.
Gun control billboard made in 2018.
Double Fantasy can be seen at the Museum of Liverpool from 18 May 2018 to 3 November 2019. There is a free entry for both the museum and the special exhibition. Exhibition was supported by Liverpool John Lennon Airport. I would suggest allowing over 1 hour for the visit, as there are a lot of things to read about. If you plan to watch some of the short movies they made, you would have to spend 2-3 hours in total.
This sounds fabulous — I’d love it. And I agree with you on the interpretation of “Imagine.” He may have meant it one way but I think the world took it much differently.
I loved the Beatles and am old enough to remember Lennon’s death quite well. In the “Paul vs. John” debate, I always chose Paul, but Ringo is my favorite.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion (myself included), but I would debate religion being the central cause of war/violence throughout history. Humans evolved some 6 million years ago, long before any type of religion, organized or otherwise. Instead, I would say the underlying factor has most often been the desire for land, natural resources, and power…. or as you said, “greed”. Anyway… just my thoughts.
This exhibition looks fantastic. A karaoke room is brilliant! The song Imagine is so thought provoking. Religion is the one thing that has caused so much violence since the beginning of man. The gun violence just keeps getting worse and worse here. There were multiple mass shootings in the past week with many deaths. Lennon would be horrified if he was still with us today.