Dan's Papers - August 15, 2008

Although the artwork of John Lennon has been touring the country for the past 15 years, with Legacy Fine Art Productions and Yoko Ono, the show had yet to arrive in the Hamptons - until now. From August 22-24, Yoko Ono and the Southampton Inn will present "Come Together, A Look Into John's Life Through His Artwork."

For three days, more than 100 pieces of Lennon's artwork created between 1968 and 1980 will be on display, featuring hand-signed pieces as well as limited-edition prints. There will be serigraphs, lithographs, copper etchings and aqua tints of Lennon's drawings. Since they were not published until after his untimely death in 1980, the majority of them are signed by Yoko Ono, with a small number of the controversial "Bag-One" series signed by Lennon.

This ever-changing exhibit has been one of the highest attended art showings in America for the past 15 years, and in keeping with Lennon's benevolent spirit, has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for charities throughout the world.

Rudy Siegel, a producer of the "Come Together" show, said, "We know that the Hamptons is the epicenter of the summer activity, but in our experience, it's been timing. We wanted to come in the high season, but have never been able to get the availability or right place - until now, at the Southampton Inn." He said he's hoping all the "Lennonheads and Beatles freaks" will come out to the show.

Yoko Ono said she rarely attends her husband's shows on the road, "because there are too many of them." But she said although she doesn't expect to be in the Hamptons, she'll "be there in spirit."

"I have been out there several times in the past," she recalled. "John and I used to rent a house in Montauk, during the late 1970s, and we'd come out there with our son, Sean. We liked Montauk because it was less commercial, and we loved going to the beach."

(Coincidentally, I remember when Lennon and Ono ate at Gosman's restaurant that summer in Montauk - I waited on them as a college student, and had to keep all the other waiters from bothering them during dinner.)

Ono laughed when I asked her about eating at Montauk restaurants. "We may have eaten at a few, but we were mostly macrobiotic," she said. "We also did some artwork out in Montauk."

She remembered visiting with her friends Mick and Bianca Jagger, when they were married back then, and also Andy Warhol, Peter Beard and Dick Cavett, who all lived in Montauk. Ono also recalled visiting her friend and fellow artist Robert Wilson during the 1990s, at some of his summer parties at the Water Mill Center.

Of her late husband's upcoming art show in Southampton, Ono said, "I think his art is similar to his songs - it communicates directly with the people."

Although both Ono and Lennon included social themes in their art, she said, "John's theme was mostly about peace and love - he wanted to convey the message that the family and love is important, and translates into world peace."

She also recalled how her family used to gather in their kitchen, which was set up with a couch, TV and stereo - the gathering place in their apartment at the Dakota in New York. "John used to sit at the kitchen table and teach Sean how to draw, and he made many drawings for him," she said.

Some of those drawings, done during the last two years of Lennon's life, entitled, "Real Love," are in the upcoming show. They include animal-oriented children's drawings of crabs, ducks, fish, frogs and pigeons. Other works in the show include some of the controversial "Bag-One" suite signed by Lennon in 1970, which were 14 drawings that he gave to Ono as a wedding gift. During the early '70s these pieces toured the world, and seven of them were considered so erotic that the police raided the exhibit in Chicago, London and Toronto.

"We'll have some of these for viewing and for sale in this upcoming show in Southampton," said Siegel.

Also in this show are selected new releases of Lennon's work, including his most recent release, "United We Stand," a simple sketch of Lennon's and Ono's faces together, encircled in a heart. There is also "Land of Milk and Honey," a print of a New York City skyline, which debuted in SoHo last December, and "Come Together," a whimsical drawing done in the early '60s of people waving balloons, which appeared in Lennon's book, In His Own Write. There will be 300 prints of each for sale in this exhibit. For Beatles lovers, there will be limited-edition prints of 20 different song lyrics, including "Revolution," "Day Tripper" and "Instant Karma."

"Some people have a greater connection with the lyrics, because that's what they grew up with," said Siegel. "It's amazing to see how he wrote out the songs, how he edited them, in his life as a song writer."

In Lennon's giving spirit, and as with other exhibits, there will be money raised at this show to benefit the Human Resources of the Hamptons, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping those in need, without discrimination, including those who face poverty, hunger, illness or homelessness. A $2 donation is suggested at the door.

Dede Gotthelf, owner of the Southampton Inn, said she is thrilled to host this exciting show of Lennon's work.

"John was my favorite Beatle because he was intellectual and socially conscious. I loved him in college, and I almost bought one of his drawings at a show on Jobs Lane during the early '70s. But back then, I needed the money for college, so now, I am going to finally purchase a piece of John Lennon's artwork, at my inn," she said. "I am also happy to be donating some money to one of our local charities, because I want to give back to our community."

The "Come Together" show will take place on August 22, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., August 23, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and August 24, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information, e-mail Lennonartwork@aol.com