Yoko Ono Recipient of the 64th Edward MacDowell Medal

July 21, 2024

WATCH THE RECORDED CEREMONY BELOW

More than a thousand people joined us on Sunday, July 21 for MacDowell's annual Medal Day celebration, honoring interdisciplinary arts icon and activist Yoko Ono with the 64th Edward MacDowell Medal. The free and open-to-the-public celebration featured the installation of two Yoko Ono Wish Trees in our orchard.

MacDowell Madam Chairman of the Board, Fellow, and best-selling author Nell Painter presented the Medal to Ono’s long-time music manager David Newgarden. Newgarden attended because the medalist could not make the trip. The brief ceremony featured curator, art historian, and arts policy specialist Nora Halpern, who spoke about Ono and her work in her introductory remarks. Halpern curated a retrospective exhibition of Yoko Ono in Venice, Italy in 2009. After the Medal presentation, attendees enjoyed a picnic lunch, added personal wishes to the Wish Trees, and toured open studios, where visitors had the opportunity to meet MacDowell artists-in-residence.

American avant-garde multimedia artist, Grammy-winning composer, and musician Laurie Anderson chaired this year’s Medal selection panel. Other members included Bushwick Starr Arts Center cofounder and MacDowell Board member Noel Allain, MacDowell Fellow and acclaimed choreographer Bebe Miller, National Black Theatre CEO Sade Lythcott, MacDowell Fellow and interdisciplinary artist Christopher Doyle, and Arts Student League Artistic & Executive Director Michael Hall.

Since 1996, Yoko Ono has invited people from around the world to write their personal wishes on a piece of paper and tie them to Wish Tree installation sites around the world. The wishes are returned to Ono and continue on in connection with her Imagine Peace Tower, a 2007 installation on Viðey Island off Reykjavik, Iceland, dedicated to the memory of her late husband John Lennon. To date, more than two million people have shared their wishes. We welcomed Medal Day participants to take part in this project after the ceremony.

For more information on how you can support MacDowell, please email events@macdowell.org or call 603-924-3886 for more information.

A woman stands in a white fedora, sunglasses, and black suit with her arms crossed, with her reflection mirrored on both sides of her body

Yoko Ono (Bjarke Ørsted photo)

Livestream: The 2024 Medal Day Ceremony

Yoko Ono, Recipient of the 64th Edward MacDowell Medal

Yoko Ono is an artist, musician, and activist. Born in Tokyo, 1933, Ono grew up in Japan, with periods spent abroad in San Francisco and New York. In 1956 she settled in Manhattan and began to develop her own art practice. By 1960, Ono had become a vital part of New York’s community of artists and composers. Over the next decade, she would go on to live and work in Tokyo and London, developing her pioneering practice in art, performance, music, and film, with legendary works including the performance Cut Piece, and her foundational book of instructions, Grapefruit, both 1964. By 1968, Ono began collaborating in art, music, and peace activism with her partner and husband John Lennon. As a singer and songwriter, Ono has released thirteen solo studio albums and nine collaborative albums, including the 1981 Grammy award-winning Album of the Year, Double Fantasy. Ono’s work continues to be honored with numerous exhibitions in some of the world’s most prestigious international venues, including The Museum of Modern Art in New York (2015) and Tate Modern in London (2024). In a career spanning more than seventy years, Ono’s work as an artist and activist remains singularly relevant and continues to challenge the boundaries of artist and audience.

Yoko Ono's Artist Page

Yoko Ono at the Tate Modern

Learn more about Medal Day History

Read Nell Painter’s welcome to the crowd, describing MacDowell as a creative sanctuary

Read Board President Christine Fisher's words of thanks and introduction of Executive Director Chiwoniso Kaitano

Read Chiwoniso Kaitano's request that Medal Day visitors leave wishes behind for Yoko Ono’s wish trees and future generations

Read Resident Director David Macy's tribute to former board member Robert McNeil

Read curator Nora Halpern’s introduction to Yoko Ono as a loving and enduring force

Read David Newgarden’s acceptance of the 64th Edward MacDowell Medal on behalf of Yoko Ono

Scenes from the Afternoon

A closeup on a hand holding the Edward MacDowell Medal, a large brass coin.

David Newgarden, Yoko Ono’s long-time music manager, holds the 64th Edward MacDowell Medal (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A large group of people stand in a row, posing for a picture. Behind them, a stone building with large windows is surrounded by lush ferns

(Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A large crowd sits in rows of chairs under a large white tent. They are facing the stage where a speaker is at the podium

Medal Day guests watch the ceremony and learn about MacDowell and the Medalist Yoko Ono (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

Five people sit on a stage, smiling and looking toward the speaker. In front of them, a crowd is gathered to listen.

Board President Christine Fisher, David Newgarden, presentation speaker Nora Halpern, Executive Director Chiwoniso Kaitano, and Resident Director David Macy (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

Two people sit on chairs on the stage. Both are smiling. The man is wearing a dark suit jacket and lightly-colored pants, the woman is wearing a dress and jacket in vibrant colors

David Newgarden and presentation speaker Nora Halpern smile onstage (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A woman wearing vibrant colors stands at a podium and reads from a small yellow book

Presentation speaker Nora Halpern reads a passage from Yoko Ono’s book, Grapefruit (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

A woman stands at a podium and addresses a large crowd. Beside her on stage, the other speakers sit in a row of chairs

Presentation speaker Nora Halpern gives her remarks, citing the influence Ono's work has had on her life (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A man stands on stage and smiles widely as he holds up the Edward Macdowell Medal triumphantly. Other people on the stage smile toward him while they applaud

David Newgarden accepts the 64th Edward MacDowell Award on behalf of Yoko Ono (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A small field is filled with guests who sit on picnic blankets and at tables, enjoying their lunch and one anothers company

Medal Day guests enjoy a picnic lunch prepared by Fiddleheads Cafe following the ceremony (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

A group of people gather on a picnic blanket and enjoy their lunches and conversation. Behind them, a lush meadow glows in the sunlight

Guests enjoy the MacDowell grounds while picnicking (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

A group of people, smiling toward the camera, gather around a picnic table to eat thei lunch

A group of MacDowell Fellows enjoy their picnic as they prepare to open their studios to the public (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

Three people smile warmly for a photo. Around them, people are gathered together for a picnic lunch

Executive Director Chiwoniso Kaitano with Violet and Godfrey Kaitano (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A small group gather together around a picnic on a lush lawn. Behind them, a stone building featuring arches create a bucolic backdrop

Guests lounge in front of James Baldwin Library (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A man plays with his son while others are gathered around their picnic lunches. The scene is set in a small field

MacDowell Fellow Jason Van Nest plays with his son (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

Four people make their way down a dirt road surrounded by deep forest

Board Member Eleanor Briggs and guests traverse the MacDowell grounds (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A man pulls a small child in a red wagon along a path. He looks back and smiles

Guests walk the path to James Baldwin Library where they will see a collection of Fellows’ works and view Yoko Ono’s films (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

A small crowd gathers in a room to view films that are projected onto a large screen

Guests watch a scene from one of Yoko Ono’s films in James Baldwin Library (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

A group of four people gather inside an artist studio featuring a large stone arch and stone flooring. Behind them, a large colorful kite hangs on the wall

Medalist Selection Committee member Michael Hall speaks with Fellow Hai-Wen Lin at their open studio (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

Two people stand together in a room, smiling and laughing as they speak with one another

Fellow Farah Mohammad welcomes a guest in Putnam Studio (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

Two people stand in the center of a large room. They look toward the ground where an artist has set up a presentation of their work

Guests view work in progress by Fellow taisha paggett inside Firth Studio (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

Three people, scattered around a large room, admire artworks that have been installed throughout the space.

Guests view works by Fellow Olivia Mole’s in Heinz studio (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

A long wooden table is adorned with artwork, one of which is an accordian folded piece of paper with drawings on it stretching several feet.

Guests view Fellow Angie Kang’s work in progress at Garland studio (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

Four people make their way along a dirt road. Surrounding them is a lush green forest. I the distance, a stone building can be seen

Guests make the trek along MacDowell’s roads to the next open studio (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

Two people sit atop a stone amphitheater. Lush green trees tower over the scene

Guests enjoy some quiet and an incredible view of Mt. Monadnock at the MacDowell amphitheater (Beowulf Sheehan photo)

A woman in a red and white striped dress stands against a desk and speaks with another woman

Fellow Rhianna Ilube speaks with guests in New Jersey Studio (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

Two red buildings sit on either side of a dirt road atop a small hill. A meadow is seen on the right and on the left, a stand of large pine trees

Guests gather atop the hill between Eastman and Firth Studios (Joanna Eldredge Morrissey photo)

a small group gather under a white tent. They are gathering materials for an activity from a table

Guests collect materials to write a wish before heading into the orchard to place it on a Yoko Ono’s Wish Tree (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

Three people gather around a table adorned with flowers and a white table cloth. They are writing on small pieces of paper.

Guests write down a wish to add to MacDowell’s installation of Yoko Ono’s Wish Tree (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

A woman attached a small white tag, on which she has written a wish, to a peach tree.

A guest ties a wish onto a Wish Tree in MacDowell's orchard (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

A family attaches a small white tag, on which they have written a wish, to a peach tree.

A family gathers under the Wish Tree to add their wishes together (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

Two men stand together, chatting. The man on the right is laughing. Behind them is an orchard of peach trees

David Newgarden speaks with a Medal Day guest and Yoko Ono fan under the Wish Tree (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

A woman attaches a small white tag, on which she has written a wish, to a peach tree.

A guest finds the perfect spot for their wish (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

A guest looks at the Wish Tree, admiring the many wishes that have accumulated throughout the day (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

A small white tag hangs from the branches of a tree. On the tag, a peace symbol is written

A wish on the Wish Tree for peace (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

Hundred of small white tags hang from the branches of a peach tree. The setting sun illuminates the scene with warm light

Wishes tied on MacDowell’s Wish Tree glow in the setting sun as Medal Day comes to an end (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

Thank you to all who attended Medal Day to celebrate Yoko Ono (Cassandra Yerkes photo)

Yoko Ono's Wish Tree at MacDowell

Paper tags with handwritten messages hang from tree branches.

One of Yoko Ono's Wish Trees, which was installed at The Museum of Modern Art. (Pietro & Silvia photo / Creative Commons photo)

Since 1996, Yoko Ono has invited people from around the world to write their personal wishes on a piece of paper and tie them to Wish Tree installation sites around the world. The wishes are returned to Ono and continue on in connection with her Imagine Peace Tower, a 2007 installation on Viðey Island off Reykjavik, Iceland, dedicated to the memory of her late husband John Lennon. To date, more than two million people have shared their wishes. On Medal Day, MacDowell becames a Wish Tree site along with museums such as the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Two fruit trees in MacDowell's orchard received over 600 wishes, contributing to this conceptual art installation series.

About the Edward MacDowell Medal

The Edward MacDowell Medal has been awarded annually since 1960 to an individual artist who has made an outstanding contribution to their field. These artists include Leonard Bernstein, John Updike, Georgia O'Keeffe, I.M. Pei, Stephen Sondheim, and Toni Morrison. The artistic discipline in which the award is given rotates in order to celebrate all of the creative fields practiced at MacDowell. Following the ceremony, visitors enjoy a picnic lunch and tour open studios. Both the award ceremony and the open studios are free, and open to the public.

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Medal Day History

Discover the History of Medal Day

Ceremony Participants

Nell Painter

Madam Chairman of the Board

Christine Fisher

President, Board of Directors

Chiwoniso Kaitano

Executive Director

David Macy

Resident Director

Nora Halpern

Introductory Speaker

David Newgarden

Accepting Award on Behalf of 64th Edward MacDowell Medalist

Yoko Ono Film Screenings in the James Baldwin Library

FILM NO. 1 ('MATCH') [aka Fluxfilm No. 14] ..................................... 1966, 5:05 min
CUT PIECE, 1964/1965 Performance March 21, 1965 ..................... 1965, 9:11 min
EYEBLINK [aka Fluxfilm No. 15], 1966 .............................................. 1966, 2:40 min
FREEDOM, 1971 .................................................................................. 1971, 1:05 min
Imagine Peace Tower, 2009 ............................................................ 2009, 10:26 min
Bad Dancer, 2013 ............................................................................... 2013, 2:04 min

Screenings Times: 2:00 p.m, 2:45 p.m., 3:30 p.m.

Run time is approximately 35 minutes

Edward MacDowell Medalist

Discipline: Interdisciplinary Art – performance

Yoko Ono

Learn more about Yoko Ono

Artists of Medal Day

Learn about our artists-in-residence, and discover a little about their processes and current projects. Visit the artists in their studios on Medal Day after lunch and until 4 p.m. It's a rare opportunity for the public to get a look at where art is made at MacDowell.

Learn about the Artists

Past Medal Days