A symphony of absence: Yoko Ono at Gropius Bau

This spring, Gropius Bau in Berlin unveils YOKO ONO: MUSIC OF THE MIND, a major solo exhibition running from April 11th to September 15th, 2025. Spanning seven decades of Ono’s groundbreaking work, the show brings together over 200 pieces—ranging from her iconic instruction pieces to installations, films, music, and photography. The exhibition explores Ono’s radical approach to language, participation, and imagination, illuminating her influence on conceptual art and activism since the 1950s.

At the heart of the exhibition is Painting to Shake Hands (1961/2025), a participatory work inviting strangers to physically connect through a handshake, embodying Ono’s belief in art as a vehicle for human interaction. In the atrium, her Wish Tree for Berlin (1996/2025) installation invites visitors to write wishes for peace and tie them to the branches of nine living trees—an ongoing gesture of collective hope and reflection.

Another highlight is Shadow Piece (1963/2025), where visitors bring their shadows together, turning an ephemeral gesture into shared experience. The exhibition also revisits early instruction works like The Blue Room Event (1966), where Ono’s handwritten phrases activate viewers’ inner worlds, encouraging poetic perception of everyday life.

Curated in collaboration with Tate Modern and Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, the show extends across Gropius Bau’s first floor, atrium, and public spaces. Director Jenny Schlenzka sees it as part of Gropius Bau’s mission to become “a space for everyone,” praising Ono’s art as playful, political, and profoundly human.

The exhibition coincides with two satellite projects in Berlin: YOKO ONO: DREAM TOGETHER at the Neue Nationalgalerie, and TOUCH (1962/2025), presented by Neuer Berliner Kunstverein in its n.b.k. Billboard series. Together, these events frame a Berlin-wide season celebrating Ono’s unique blend of sensitivity, activism, and imagination.

Ono once said, “The only sound that exists to me is the sound of the mind.” At Gropius Bau, her visionary practice invites Berliners and international visitors alike to listen—and respond.