Image: Sakıp Sabancı Museum, Sarıyer
Yoko Ono's Imagine Peace Tower was switched on for the 20th time on Friday, 9 October 2026, on the island of Viðey off Reykjavík. A large crowd attended the lighting, held on John Lennon's birthday, and according to the City of Reykjavík every Elding ferry sailing to the island was sold out.
Before the lighting, the singer Árný Margrét performed several songs and the mayor of Reykjavík, Hildur Björnsdóttir, addressed the guests. The tower was then lit while "Imagine" by John Lennon and Yoko Ono was played. Visitors could also join a history walk and a guided tour of works on the island by Richard Serra and Yoko Ono, while an art workshop and candle sale took place at Naustið. Wish Trees, on which visitors can hang their wishes for peace, are being shown at Reykjavík City Hall.
Ono unveiled the work on 9 October 2007 and dedicated it to the memory of Lennon. The Reykjavík Art Museum describes it as a beacon for world peace, built in the form of a wishing well engraved with the words "Imagine Peace" in 24 languages. Fifteen searchlights rise from the well and merge into a single column of light, while six further lights travel through channels in the surrounding platform and are reflected upwards by mirrors. The platform is paved with three Icelandic stones – liparite, dolerite and basalt – and the design extends Ono's 1965 instruction piece "Light House". The tower runs on geothermal electricity from the Hellisheiði power plant.
Each year the tower shines from Lennon's birthday until 8 December, the anniversary of his death, and again from the winter solstice to New Year's Day, as well as for a week in spring. The city says this season's lighting will continue until 1 January 2027.
