....Fifty acorns tied in a sack

In June 1968 John and Yoko came to my hometown of Coventry. They designed a seat for a sculpture exhibition, which was being held in the ruins of Coventry Cathedral. Their exhibit was called 'Yoko by John' and 'John by Yoko'. However, the seat caused an argument because it was being displayed with pieces by famous artists such as Barbara Hepwoth and Henry Moore. The organisers even said that it wasn't a sculpture! It was placed ouside the Cathedral Chapel of Unity. This is where John planted the acorns. John and Yoko also placed a plaque with 'Yoko by John' and 'John by Yoko' on the seat. Soon after, the plaque was stolen. The seat and the acorns were then moved again by the staff at the Cathedral to the Cathedral garden. John was not pleased about this because it upset the balance of the creation. They had originally planted them in an east-west position to 'bridge' John and Yoko's places of birth and was an important part of the sculpture, which was insured for £4,500. It was meant for people to sit on and think about the acorns growing. John and Yoko planned to return to Coventry to replace them, but the acorns were stolen and there were rumours of John and Yoko returning to replace them, but as they were not happy, John had the bench removed. If you've ever seen the film 'Imagine' about John Lennon, they show a home movie from the late 1960's of John singing 'I've Got A Feeling', he is sitting on a white bench seat, which looks very similar to the one they had in Coventry.....

Below are some of my photographs of Coventry Cathedral (old) and it's grounds

Photographs owned by Hannah Tobin