Editing Strawberry Fields (memorial) (section)

==History==
[[File:Strawberry Fields Forever.JPG|thumb|The caption "[[Imagine (John Lennon song)|Imagine]]" on the memorial mosaic]]
[[File:Strawberry fields 10 years jeh.jpg|thumb|On the 30th anniversary of Lennon's [[Murder of John Lennon|death]]]]

=== Creation ===
In April 1981, a patch of land in Central Park, near the Dakota Apartments where Lennon lived with Ono, was officially named "Strawberry Fields" in his memory.<ref>{{cite web | title=The City; Central Park Section To Honor Lennon | website=The New York Times | date=April 17, 1981 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/04/17/nyregion/the-city-central-park-section-to-honor-lennon.html | access-date=April 14, 2019}}</ref> That August, it was announced that Strawberry Fields would be completely renovated and landscaped, since at the time, Strawberry Fields was located in an isolated median between [[West Drive (Manhattan)|West Drive]] and two [[slip road]]s of [[72nd Street (Manhattan)|72nd Street]].<ref>{{cite web | last1=Krebs | first1=Albin | last2=Thomas | first2=Robert McG. | title=NOTES ON PEOPLE; Strawberry Fields Is in for a Restoration | website=The New York Times | date=August 22, 1981 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/08/22/nyregion/notes-on-people-strawberry-fields-is-in-for-a-restoration.html | access-date=April 14, 2019}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> Yoko Ono requested that the rebuilt memorial be a "living memorial" rather than a statue; according to NYC Parks landscape architect Arne Abramowitz, Ono believed that "there are enough statues in Central Park".<ref name=":0" />

The memorial was designed by Bruce Kelly, the chief landscape architect for the [[Central Park Conservancy]].<ref>{{cite web | last=Dunlap | first=David W. | title=Bruce Kelly, 44, Architect of Strawberry Fields | website=The New York Times | date=January 23, 1993 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/01/23/obituaries/bruce-kelly-44-architect-of-strawberry-fields.html | access-date=April 14, 2019}}</ref> Construction on the project started in April 1984.<ref>{{cite web | last1=Anderson | first1=Susan Heller | last2=Bird | first2=David | title=NEW YORK DAY BY DAY; Ground Is Broken For Strawberry Fields | website=The New York Times | date=March 22, 1984 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/03/22/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-ground-is-broken-for-strawberry-fields.html | access-date=April 14, 2019}}</ref> Strawberry Fields was dedicated on what would have been Lennon's 45th birthday, October 9, 1985, by Ono and mayor [[Ed Koch]].<ref>{{cite web | last=Dowd | first=Maureen | title=STRAWBERRY FIELDS 'GARDEN OF PEACE' OPENS TODAY | website=The New York Times | date=October 9, 1985 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/10/09/nyregion/strawberry-fields-garden-of-peace-opens-today.html | access-date=April 14, 2019}}</ref> Speaking on behalf of the [[United Nations]] at the dedication was [[Marcela Pérez de Cuéllar]], the UN [[first lady]].<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Memorial to Lennon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/10/09/world/united-nations-calendar.html |access-date=16 January 2024 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=9 October 1985 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114231419/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/10/09/world/united-nations-calendar.html |archive-date=14 January 2024 |location=New York, New York |page=A11 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The "Imagine" mosaic was not placed on sufficient foundation and began to noticeably sink in 2007.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.columbiaspectator.com/2007/09/13/imagine-mosaic-sinking-park |title='Imagine' Mosaic Sinking in Park |date=September 13, 2007 |access-date=September 22, 2009 |first=Maggie |last=Astor |work=Columbia Daily Spectator}}</ref>

===Usage===
The memorial is often covered with flowers, candles in glasses, and other belongings left behind by Lennon's fans.  On Lennon's birthday (October 9) and on the anniversary of his death (December 8), people gather to sing songs and pay tribute, staying late into what is often a cold night. The tributes usually run all night, but for a period through the late 1990s and early 2000s, mayor [[Rudy Giuliani]] enforced a curfew, which prohibited people from being inside Central Park after it closed each day at 1:00 a.m.<ref>{{cite web | last=Kilgannon | first=Corey | title=Strawberry Fields Not Forever As Fans Protest a Curfew | website=The New York Times | date=December 5, 2002 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/05/nyregion/strawberry-fields-not-forever-as-fans-protest-a-curfew.html | access-date=April 14, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30641457/|title=No all-night Lennon vigil|last=Rose|first=Derek|date=December 8, 2000|work=New York Daily News|access-date=April 15, 2019|pages=981|via=Newspapers.com {{open access}}}}</ref> Gatherings also take place on the birthdays of other Beatles. Impromptu memorial gatherings for other musicians, including [[Jerry Garcia]] and [[George Harrison]], have occurred at the memorial. In the days following the [[September 11 attacks]], candlelight vigils were held at the Imagine Circle to remember those killed.

On weekends, musicians often play for the enjoyment of thousands of fans from around the world who visit the site. These musicians formerly conflicted frequently with each other, but since at least 2016, had adhered to an informal code of conduct.<ref>{{cite web | title=At Strawberry Fields, Feuding Musicians Give Peace a Chance | website=The New York Times | last=Kilgannon | first=Corey | date=May 1, 2016 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/01/nyregion/at-strawberry-fields-feuding-musicians-give-peace-a-chance.html | access-date=April 14, 2019}}</ref>

''Strawberry Fields'', an opera by [[Michael Torke]] to a libretto by [[A. R. Gurney]], takes place at the memorial. Act II of a trilogy entitled ''Central Park'' jointly commissioned by [[Glimmerglass Opera]], [[New York City Opera]], and [[Great Performances]], it was premiered by the Glimmerglass Festival on July 24, 1999, and was later produced by New York City Opera.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.michaeltorke.com/strawberry-fields|title=Strawberry Fields|website=MICHAEL TORKE|access-date=December 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/07/26/arts/opera-review-playwrights-as-librettists-for-a-trilogy-set-in-a-park.html|title=OPERA REVIEW; Playwrights As Librettists For a Trilogy Set in a Park (Published 1999)|first=Allan|last=Kozinn|newspaper=The New York Times |date=July 26, 1999|access-date=December 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/11/15/arts/city-opera-review-park-bench-habitues-play-out-life-in-song.html|title=CITY OPERA REVIEW; Park Bench Habitues Play Out Life in Song (Published 1999)|first=Bernard|last=Holland|newspaper=The New York Times |date=November 15, 1999|access-date=December 8, 2020}}</ref>