Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd was a personal friend of John Lennon and Yoko Ono. After the shooting, Carl Fredrik was asked by Yoko to create an artistic tribute to John and his vision of a peaceful world.

John Lennon

The idea behind the knotted gun was to honor John Lennon for his vision of a world at peace. At the time John Lennon was one of the most public advocates for peace and non-violence and in many of his songs, both as part of the famous pop group The Beatles, and together with his wife Yoko Ono, the lyric focused on the vision of a world without violence. Here are the final lyrics of his most famous song, “Imagine”:

“Imagine all the people living life in peace you may say that I’m a dreamer But I am not the only one I hope someday you’ll join us and the world will live as one.”

Initially, the sculpture was placed in the Strawberry Fields memorial in Central Park, NYC, across the street from where John and Yoko lived. In 1988, the Government of Luxembourg donated a bronze sculpture to the United Nations.

It was placed outside the United Nations headquarters in New York and Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary General and Nobel Peace Laureate, stated at the 10 year anniversary:

“The sculpture Non – Violence has not only endowed the United Nations with a cherished work of art; it has enriched the consciousness of humanity with a powerful symbol that encapsulates, in a few simple curves, the greatest prayer of man; that which asks not for victory, but for peace.”

Since the honorable placement at the United Nations, replicas has been placed at more than 30 strategic places around the world, including the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, at the Waterfront in Cape Town and in the Peace Park in Beijing.

According to www.nonviolence.com/