Yoko Ono

Box of Smile (ReFlux Editions), 2001.

Engraved plastic, mirror. 9 x 9 x 3 cm.

__

Box of Smile is a conceptual multiple by Yoko Ono inviting the viewer to take part in a simple yet meaningful action. Presented as a small box containing written instructions, the work asks the participant to smile and reflect on that universal human gesture. Instruction-based works such as this are central to Ono’s practice, developed in the early 1960s and closely associated with Fluxus and conceptual art.

This edition was produced in 2001 by ReFlux Editions, founded by Barbara Moore in New York, with the aim of reissuing historically important Fluxus and conceptual works in accessible, authorised formats. Box of Smile was published as a numbered edition of 1,000 copies, allowing the work to circulate widely while remaining faithful to the original concept.

Both playful and contemplative, Box of Smile exists fully only when activated by its owner, transforming an everyday expression into an artwork.