An exhibit at The Beatles Fashion Art Exhibition in Beijing Photo: Xu Liuliu/GT

 

From left: Beatles members Ringo Starr, George Harrison, Paul McCartney and John Lennon Photo: VCG

 

Hey Jude, don't make it bad.

Take a sad song and make it better.

Remember to let her into your heart,

Then you can start to make it better.

The song "Hey Jude," from the world-famous band the Beatles, echoes throughout the exhibition space, evoking many beautiful memories of the band's golden time in the minds of visitors. 

The Beatles Fashion Art Exhibition kicked off in Joy City in Beijing's Chaoyang district on Saturday, providing an opportunity for Chinese fans to get to know their idols better.

"We are holding this exhibition because there are still many fans of the Beatles in China. We want to take them back to the 1960s and show them more detailed stories about this amazing band," Yao Jingjing, one of exhibition organizers, told the Global Times. 

Back to the golden age

According to Yao, they decided to divide the exhibition into four sections based on inspiration from the album cover colors (pink, coral orange, yellow and blue) for the band's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Entering the first part, the whole room is bathed in pink light. The lyrics to four of the Beatles' most famous songs "Imagine," "Because," "Help" and "Hey Jude" are printed on some glass windows.

"We chose these four songs because they are really famous. Even those who are not familiar with the band have heard these four and have memories about them," Yao said.

Visitors can also explore a room designed like a photo studio that has been covered with news clippings documenting the band's glory days. Looking around from the center of the room, visitors can catch at a glance the entire history of their golden age. 

The second part of the exhibition is colored coral orange. More than 100 pairs of granny glasses hang on one wall. Granny glasses are the only relic that John Lennon's grandmother left to him. Lennon took them everywhere, causing these types of glasses to become a fashion trend, according to Yao, who noted that the band were also kings of the fashion field. 

"As a fan of the Beatles, I went to The Beatles Story, a museum in Liverpool, when I studied in UK. I quite like their songs, simple but powerful. I even bought a pair of granny glasses in the museum to commemorate John Lennon," Dang Jiu, a 27-year-old self-media businesswoman, told the Global Times. 

One hundred original classic photographs of the Beatles at their peak are displayed on the other walls. Those photos were taken by a Daily Mirror reporter between 1963 and 1972. Some of these cannot even be found online, which makes the exhibition even more valuable to fans. 

Classics never fade away

The third section, submerged in yellow, is naturally named Yellow Submarine, after the animated film in which the four stars appeared. 

Yao said they chose the film because it reflected the tortuous development of the band, from the suffering they went through at the beginning of their careers when a record company turned them down to the happy ending when they end up creating their own musical world. 

"I started to listen to the Beatles music when I was a teenager. Their songs are very uplifting. Even now, many of my friends still like them. I think the Beatles were not just an excellent band but also represent the rock era of the 1960s," Dou Li, a 27-year-old man living in Beijing, told the Global Times. 

Blue is the color of the last section. On the right side as visitors walk in, a set of drums featuring the band's name sits on a stage, giving everyone a chance to experience being a drummer. On the other side, four guitars that look just like those that once belonged to the stars sit in a shop window. Visitors can go on stage, where there is a microphone in a stand, and pretend to sing along with the band.  

Continuing on to the next room, visitors end up walking through an art installation that looks like a rooftop, a call back to the Beatles' rooftop concert that shocked the world 50 years ago.

Never say goodbye

Finally, when coming to the last room, a blue tunnel full of lights appears in front of visitors. At the end of the tunnel, the backs of the four band members can be seen, as if they are saying goodbye to visitors. 

 "The exhibition is pretty good. I am from France, which is not far from the UK, so I surely know how famous they are. The exhibition provided a lot of information about the band including photos and news articles, which allowed me to know more about the Beatles," Clement, a 28-year-old man who runs a bar in Beijing, told the Global Times. 

Yao said that she originally thought fans of the band were limited to those in their late 20s or older, until she met a 15-year-old boy at the exhibition. 

"The boy's taste is very mature. He said the four stars looked very handsome and they are truly talented in creating songs compared to some young Chinese idols who gain attention through their looks but are not creative musically at all," Yao said. 

"I hope one day, a band like the Beatles can appear," noted Dou, before breaking into a rendition of "Hey Jude."
Newspaper headline: Visiting ‘Yesterday’