O No, Mr. Lennon

One supposedly controversial aspect of the prints is that Ono has added color to them -- blue washes to the skies, yellow to suns and rainbows to the self portraits and other drawings -- making them look like the B.C. comic strip on a Sunday. "I thought it was very strange when one of the initial organizers of this program came to me with [Lennon's] work that had been colored," Ono says. "I said, 'Who colored it? How dare you?' -- I felt almost sacrilegious. They were saying, 'Well, I'm sorry, we need some color because otherwise they don't put it in the window.' I have a realistic side. If they can't show it in the window, they're not going to do that type of show. I thought, I was the partner, so he might not mind if I do it. That kind of realism I learned by being with John and being in the record world."

Now, I find the whole proposition that John Lennon needs help getting his work in the window (the window? Were they trying to show this stuff in a shopping mall?) fairly dubious. But if Ono wants to color in reproductions of her late husband's sketches and sign them, I'm not going to get my dander up. It's basically glorified poster art anyway, and the prints for sale are glorified posters. As Ono says, "It'll be nice if people just dig his work and have fun." Art for the people, right on.

There will be more fun to be had if the actual event is handled better than the early promotion was. The release invites us to a three-day "exclusive Honolulu showing" at the Renaissance Houston Hotel, makes reference to Lennon's diary "entrees" and entices us to behold "two new pieces never shown before to the public that John did." It also assures us that the "admission is free, which is very unusual these days especially considering the artist." Last I checked, free admission was still a policy at most galleries. (Though it is surprising, considering its "Place for All People" agenda, that the Museum of Fine Arts wasn't chomping to host this blockbuster.) And as you may have suspected, "free" is just a bit misleading. The press release also notes that the affair will benefit the Houston Food Bank. After doing a little investigation, I discovered that it's not the proceeds from the sale of the art that will go to the Food Bank, but the $2 donation you'll be asked for at the door.

Oh, well. Two dollars is a petty thing to begrudge the Houston Food Bank. And if you'd like to begrudge the art on hand your serious consideration, that's okay with Mother Ono, who I presume has more important things to think about, just as she always has. "I think the art world needs more of a sense of fun," she says. "The art world needs John more than the other way around, in a way. To say that I want his work to be 'taken seriously' is kind of an oxymoron."

In that case, mother, no worries.

"Music for the Eyes: The Artwork of John Lennon" will be on display February 2123 at the Renaissance Houston Hotel, 6 Greenway Plaza East, 629-1200.