T.V. to See the Sky is inspired by Yoko Ono’s second conceptualization of SKY T.V. in 1967 for the Lisson Gallery, which she described as “a T.V. just to see the sky. Different channels for different skies, high-up sky, low sky, etc.” SKY T.V. from 1966 (furniture piece) was a video sculpture described by Ono as “a closed circuit T.V. set up in the gallery for looking at the sky”. It broadcasts a live video feed of the sky from above the building where it was installed — a way to bring the sky inside, even if a space lacked windows. In collaboration with Yoko Ono, the Getty Research Institute and the Feminist Center for Creative Work will present a 24-hour video streaming of the sky via Zoom. A network of international institutions will participate in a live broadcast of the sky transmitted to audiences at home. At a time of profound revolution and reflection, a time of restricted travel but great desire for connection, we seek to draw upon Ono’s invocation of the sky as a space of generative possibility and renewal as well as a territory beyond the reach of capital and ownership.
The event takes place on Monday 21 June 2021 beginning at sunrise, 5:42 am PST, and continuing for 24 hours, to coincide with and celebrate the Solstice and the Strawberry Moon Eclipse (June 20-24).
Registration link for attendees: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_SRK9XUXLSQOd0lQi35yWWQ
This will be the first time that T.V. to See the Sky has been actualized, and the Belkin will join the hundreds of organizations participating in this iteration of the work with a camera trained on the sky above the gallery, viewable through the Zoom link for the world to see. Ono imagined T.V. to See the Sky as a score; event scores are descriptive instructions for actions to perform everyday activities such as seeing the sky either by the author or by someone else.
Image (above): The sky above Los Angeles. Courtesy of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
Yoko Ono, Sky TV for Washington, 1966/2014, closed-circuit video installation, dimensions variable. Collection of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Joseph H. Hirshhorn Purchase Fund, 2016. Photo: William Andrews
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