The Gates, Central Park, New York City, 1979-2005

Photo: Wolfgang Volz. © Christo 2005

In New York City, Christo and Jeanne-Claude installed 7,503 gates along 23 miles of walkways in Central Park. Seven-foot long saffron-colored fabric panels were suspended from the 16-foot-high vinyl gates, which varied in width from 5.5 feet to 18 feet, depending on the different widths of the walkways.  The Gates seemed like a golden river appearing and disappearing through the bare branches the trees and highlighting the shape of the footpaths. After 26 years of effort, The Gates remained on exhibition for 16 days during the winter of 2005.  The project was then removed and the materials were  industrially recycled.

Wrapped Trees, Foundation Beyeler, Reihen, Switzerland, 1997-1998

Photo: Wolfgang Volz, © Christo 1998

More than three decades after the artists first proposed wrapping live trees, 178 trees were wrapped in the park around the Foundation Beyeler in Reihen, Switzerland.  Many different types of trees were covered in 592,034 square feet of woven polyester fabric (used in Japan to protect fragile trees from frost and snow) and secured by 14.4 miles of rope. The branches of the Wrapped Trees pushed the translucent fabric outward, creating dynamic volumes of light and shadow, moving in the wind with new forms and surfaces shaped by the ropes on the fabric.

Wrapped Reichstag, Berlin, 1971-1995

Photo: Wolfgang Volz, © Christo 1995

After meeting with hundreds of East and West German government officials over the course of 23 years, Christo and Jeanne-Claude finally gained permission to create Wrapped Reichstag in 1994. The wrapping of the Reichstag was completed by a work force of 90 professional climbers and 120 installation workers. More than 1 million square feet of aluminum-coated, woven polypropylene fabric and over 50,000 feet of blue polypropylene rope created a sumptuous flow of vertical folds highlighting the features and proportions of the imposing structure, revealing the essence of the Reichstag.

The Umbrellas, Japan-USA, 1984-1991

Photo: Wolfgang Volz, © Christo 1991

This Japan-USA temporary work of art was exhibited simultaneously in two inland valleys separated by the Pacific Ocean. The Umbrellas reflected the similarities and differences in the ways of life and the use of land in each valley, one 12 miles long in Japan, and the other 18 miles long in California.  All 3,100 umbrellas were assembled in California: the yellow umbrellas were installed 60 miles north of Los Angeles and 1,340 blue umbrellas were installed 75 miles north of Tokyo, Japan.  The Umbrellas created an invitational inner space, as houses without walls or temporary settlements, mirroring the ephemeral character of the work of art.

Pont Neuf Wrapped, Paris, 1975-1985

Photo: Wolfgang Volz, © Christo 1985

In 1985 Christo and Jeanne-Claude employed the help of 300 professional workers to complete Pont Neuf Wrapped.  More than 450,000 square feet of woven polyamide fabric was used to cover the famous bridge, including the sides and vaults of the twelve arches, without hindering river traffic. The silky, golden sandstone fabric also covered the parapets down to the ground, the sidewalks and curbs (pedestrians walked on the fabric), all the street lamps on both sides of the bridge, and the vertical part of the embankment of the western tip of the Ile de la Cité. Ropes held down the fabric to the bridge’s surface and maintained the principal shapes, while emphasizing proportions and details of the Pont-Neuf, which has joined the left and right banks of the Seine River in the heart of Paris for over 400 years.

Surrounded Islands, Biscayne Bay, Greater Miami, Florida, 1980-1983

Photo: Wolfgang Volz, © Christo 1983

Christo and Jeanne-Claude surrounded 11 of the islands situated in Biscayne Bay near Miami with 6.5 million square feet of pink woven polypropylene fabric. Floating on the water, the fabric extended 200 feet beyond each island into the Bay. The artists consulted with marine biologists, ornithologists and mammal experts and cleared over 40 tons of debris from the islands in preparation of the project. Spreading over seven miles, Surrounded Island could be viewed from the causeways, the land, the water and the air.  Surrounded Islands was a work of art that underlined the various ways in which the people of Miami live, between land and water.

Running Fence, Sonoma and Marin Counties, California, 1972-1976

Photo: Jeanne-Claude, © Christo 1976

Running Fence stretched for 24½ miles through the rolling hills of Sonoma and Marin counties before dropping down into the Pacific Ocean at Bodega Bay.  The 18-foot high fence was constructed of 2,222,222 square feet of heavy woven white nylon fabric, hung from steel cables and strung between steel poles.  The art project was only on display for 14 days, but it required 42 months of effort, the participation of 59 ranching families, 18 public hearings, three sessions at the Superior Courts of California, a 450-page Environmental Impact Report, and the temporary use of the hills, sky and ocean.

Valley Curtain, Rifle, Colorado, 1970-1972

Photo: Wolfgang Volz, © Christo 1972

In Rifle, Colorado, 142,000 square feet of orange nylon fabric was installed between two mountains in the Grand Hogback Mountain Range, 1,250 feet apart.  It took 28 months to complete, but in 1979, 35 construction workers and 64 temporary helpers tied down the last of the ropes to secure the curtain to its moorings in the Rifle Gap.  The Valley Curtain curved from 365-feet high at each end to 182-feet high at the center. Unpredicted gale force winds (estimated in excess of 60 mph) made it necessary to start the removal of Valley Curtain 28 hours after completion of the project. Click here for more information about the Valley Curtain.