John Lennon, centre left, and Yoko Ono are flanked by journalists in Room 1742 of the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal in 1969. John Lennon, centre left, and Yoko Ono are flanked by journalists in Room 1742 of the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal in 1969. (Jacques Bourdon/Le Journal de Montreal/Montreal Museum of Fine Arts)

Forty years ago, between the profound success of Expo ’67 and the stunning ineptness of the ’76 Olympics, the eyes of the world fell again upon the city of Montreal. It was 1969, and at the height of their fame as the planet’s most famous couple, Beatles member John Lennon and performance artist Yoko Ono stunned the world with the announcement of their honeymoon plans.

To draw attention to the ongoing war in Vietnam, the pyjama-clad couple holed themselves up for a week at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in downtown Montreal. Between May 26 and June 2, the newlyweds opened their room to the likes of journalists, detractors and even LSD guru Timothy Leary as a means to advance the cause of peace. “We’re all responsible for war. We must all do something, no matter what — by growing our hair long, standing on one leg, talking to the press, having bed-ins — to change attitudes,” quipped Lennon to the omnipresent press corps. “The people must be aware that it’s up to them.”

The bedroom became a political pulpit, and what opponents denounced as a publicity stunt was heralded by the couple’s followers as a thought-provoking performance piece questioning the very definitions of identity, privacy and space. That hotel room even served as a recording studio for the worldwide pacifist anthem Give Peace a Chance, which was recorded on June 1, 1969, with voices that included some local Hare Krishna temple members.

Four decades later, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts is celebrating this legendary manifestation with a multimedia exhibition organized in collaboration with Yoko Ono. Entitled Imagine: The Peace Ballad of John & Yoko, this free exhibition opens April 2 and will comprise nine sections organized from the couple’s 1966 meeting through to Ono’s contemporary art works. CBCNews.ca spoke with the 76-year-old Ono a few days prior to the exhibition’s opening about art, politics and what she has up her sleeve for the future.

Artist and musician Yoko Ono. Artist and musician Yoko Ono. (Getty Images)

Q: How did you and John conceive the idea of the bed-in?

A: You know, we just wanted to do something for our honeymoon. We knew we were going to be harassed by the whole [media] organization. We turned it around in order to give something back — to promote world peace.

Q: What is your fondest memory of the Montreal bed-in?

A: Everything about Montreal; it was a great trip, really.

Usually when you go to a town, you go out – to a restaurant or something outside – to get a memory of the city. But we didn’t. We just went back to our room at the hotel, and still that was very exciting to us.

Q: There was a moment during the bed-in in which American cartoonist Al Capp, a vocal opponent of your action, called you the “famous freaks.” How does that comment resonate with you 40 years later?

A: Well, we were the clowns, and through that we wanted to be a bit comedic with the idea of the bed-in. [The moniker] is an honour, I think.

Q: I understand the curator for Imagine, Emma Lavigne, was responsible for a large exhibition on John Lennon’s music a couple of years ago at the Cité de la musique in Paris as well.

A: Yes, exactly. They are very intelligent and conscientious people and it makes me look forward to coming to Montreal. Not only because it’s a place of very precious memories but because the exhibition is being run so well.

Q: What are your thoughts on the direction of music and art in this digital age of high-speed internet and open-source technology?

A: I think it’s a blessing. Of course people are wondering, “Oh, is that going to be too exploitative,” or whatever. But I think it’s going to really help music and art be more communicative to the general audience.

Q: The ascension of Barack Obama to the U.S. presidency has filled the world with a sort of hope that hasn’t been felt in decades. Do you think this assists your long-term quest for world peace?

A: One thing that I think — because I’ve been really trying to communicate this idea to everyone — is that “imagining” is just so important. It has the power to create things. I think it was that type of mental meditation that helped create this change.

We should not be impatient about what politicians can do — we have to give them space to do something. Politics right now is in a very difficult situation, and so we have to keep a kind of warm mind towards it.

John Lennon, right, and Yoko Ono at the 1969 Montreal Bed-in. John Lennon, right, and Yoko Ono at the 1969 Montreal Bed-in. (Ivor Sharp/Collection of Yoko Ono Lennon, New York/Montreal Museum of Fine Arts)

Q: You and John showed a keen awareness of the media machine and cleverly used that manipulation of the media to promote your own politics of peace. It feels, at times, that the last decade has been one long war. There also seems to have been few dissenting voices during this time. Is this the fault of the media, or is it the fault of the people?

A: I think it’s a message that has come to us in the best way and we’re receiving that message now. We’re living according to what that message tells us to do, and I really think that we’re doing it. It’s just that [the message] is a very quiet process; it’s not rallying.

Rallying is — well, you have to do what you think is most powerful, so I’m not negating it. But quite often, the administrations of these countries are very aware of what the people are doing rallying, so they just prepare for that. We must have other methods, too. I’m not talking about violent methods, but very spiritual methods.

Q: Do you think online grassroots peace organizations are the way to effectively rally in this day and age?

A: Definitely — they are doing it. It’s very powerful. People have been saying the world is going to become a global village, and it is getting to be one to the extent that some very powerful governments want to stomp or squash this whole internet thing. That’s how powerful [the internet] is.

Q: You are one of the great political artists and activists of the 20th century. Can you define what it is exactly that marries political activism and art so decisively in your work?

A: It’s a natural process that the two go hand-in-hand for me. It just came naturally; it’s not like I was saying, “Oh, I want to join [art and politics] together!” [Laughs.] I’m a very lucky person in that sense.

Q: What are you keeping busy with at the moment?

A: I’m in the midst of being in the studio with my son to make my next album. It’s very exciting. I’m going to stop recording for two or three days in order to go to Montreal and back.

Q: That’s with Sean [Lennon]?

A: Yes, with Sean.

Q: When can we expect that to come out?

A: Well, we were expecting it to be out yesterday. [Laughs.]

Q: How do you sustain your artistic passion after nearly five decades of work?

A: Well, the passion has been sustained, and I guess I’m the one who goes about sustaining it. But I also think I’m getting a lot of help from the outside world. I always felt destined to do this sort of thing.

Imagine: The Peace Ballad of John & Yoko runs April 2 to June 21.

Christopher Sykes is a writer based in Montreal.