Strolling the Wooded Island in Chicago’s Jackson Park, you’ll notice a metal object peeking over a grassy mound. The grassy hill gives way to dramatic stainless steel art installation by Yoko Ono. Sky Landing is her first permanent artwork in the Americas.
Petals for Peace
A dozen 12-foot-tall lotus petals stretch skyward, symbolizing peace. They aren’t uniform, appearing in various stages of immersion. The petals bloom in a circular formation offering a “transformed and transformative space.”
Sky Landing reflects the hope for a new world—a world of peace among people of all nations. – Yoko Ono
Sky Landing sits between two grassy slopes. They form a line between them creating appearance of flowing together and lifting the viewer into the sky.
Phoenix Rising
The location of Sky Landing isn’t just picturesque, it’s historically significant. Jackson Park was created in the Hyde Park neighborhood for the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893, and the Wooded Island was chosen as the site of the Japanese Pavilion.
Sky Landing stands on the site of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition’s Japanese Pavilion. Named Ho-o-den, or Phoenix Pavilion, it introduced Japanese arts and culture to Americans and remained as a gift to Chicago even after the fair closed. The pavilion was destroyed by arson in 1946, but visitors can still enjoy the Garden of the Phoenix today.
Yoko Ono was born in Japan in 1933. In her book Acorn, she describes the significance of the sky in her life during the challenging years of WWII: “It was getting easier to just lie down and watch the sky. That’s when I fell in love with the sky, I think.”
Since then, all my life, I have been in love with the sky. Even when everything was falling apart around me, the sky was always there for me…. As I told myself then, I could never give up on life as long as the sky was there. – Yoko Ono
Ono and Chicago
Yoko Ono first visited Chicago in the 1970s with her husband, John Lennon. In 2013, she visited the Garden of the Phoenix for the first time feeling a powerful sense of place and history. According to the Sky Landing website, “She envisioned a lotus of hope rising from the ashes of the phoenix to usher in a new era of peace.”
When I encountered Chicago in a really great way, I thought, ‘Wow, they have a lot to make us learn.’ – Yoko Ono
In 2015, Ono held a “ground healing” ceremony to prepare the site for her work. She gifted Sky Landing to Chicago in 2016, describing it as the “place where the sky and earth meet and create a seed to learn about the past and come together to create a future of peace and harmony, with nature and each other.”
Today, Sky Landing rises from the ashes of the lost Phoenix Pavilion as a place for contemplation, healing, and unity. The garden symbolizing friendship between Japan and the United States encourages us to learn about the past and unite in a peaceful future.
Messages of Peace
Whether or not you’re able to visit Sky Landing in person, anyone can leave a message of peace. Wishes from Around the World encourages visitors to submit a wish for anything they like. A map of wishes connects visitors with wishers from around the world. Here’s hoping that we’re all wishing for harmony with one another.
Sources
- Blumberg, Nick, and Mark Vitali. “Yoko Ono Unveils ‘Sky Landing’ in Jackson Park.” WTTW News.
- “Japanese Garden.” Parks & Facilities, Chicago Park District.
- Richardson, Bruce. “Japan Took Center Stage at Chicago’s 1893 World’s Fair.” Centre College’s Norton Center For The Arts, January 7, 2015.
- “Sky Landing: Artwork.” Parks & Facilities, Chicago Park District.
- “Skylanding by Yoko Ono.” SKYLANDING By Yoko Ono.
Sky Landing
6033 S. Cornell Dr.
Chicago, IL 60649
Jessica Mlinaric founded Urban Explorer in 2010 to inspire curious travelers by highlighting history, culture, and hidden gems in Chicago and beyond. She is the author of ‘Secret Chicago’ and ‘Chicago Scavenger.’ Jessica has visited 20+ countries and 30+ U.S. states. She has more than 16 years of experience as a marketing strategist and works as a freelance writer and photographer.
