It's a wrap: the wonderful world of Christo

[emad]

The Independent
It has been 12 years in conception, but the Bulgarian artist's vision for Central Park is ready to be unveiled. By David Usborne
06 January 2005


In a cold winter rain yesterday, an army of New York City workers were using fork lifts to place thousands of specially designed steel bases along 23 miles (37km) of footpaths in Central Park in preparation for an extravagant new outdoor exhibit conceived by the artist Christo and his wife, Jeanne-Claude.

Into the steel bases will eventually slot vinyl poles that will give form to no fewer than 7,500 gates. On 12 February, the entire creation will come to life when curtains of saffron-coloured cloth will be unfurled from the top of each gate to hang 7 feet (about 2.1m) above the ground.

The completed installation will be the culmination of 25 years of effort by Christo, who is Bulgarian, and his French wife to bring their inspiration to the world's most famous park. Requests for permits to use Central Park were rebuffed in 1979 and it was only after Michael Bloomberg became mayor that the city acquiesced.

For two weeks in February, residents of the city and tourists will be able to follow the course of the gates, which from above will resemble a giant serpent threaded through the park. The artists, who are perhaps most famous for wrapping world monuments such as the Pont Neuf in Paris and the Berlin Reichstag, said they had chosen February because the leafless trees would make for better viewing of their work.

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=598146

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

1. The article gets the Umbrella story wrong

Christo being the unthinking talentless hack that he is, put wooden umbrelllas up in one of the most windy areas of Southern California...one of the observers was killed when one of the umbrellas was pulled up from the ground and struck him. That ended the show in Cali.

[Stephanie]

2. I can't wait

And it's opening on my birthday. I'm going to have an awesome Christo party in the Park.

[bryant69]

3. The Architecture of Reversible Destiny

Now More then Ever!

[Cleita]

4. I remember when Christo lined the road across the grapevine

in So. California with yellow umbrellas. Since my husband and I were living in Castaic at the time we decided to go out and see what the fuss was about. Those arty types who came to see in what is pretty much a wilderness area stood out like sore thumbs. We were wearing hiking boots and levis. There were women stumbling around in high heeled shoes and big hats.

Christo didn't do his homework and didn't realize that the canyons in California are pretty windy places and the umbrellas started to get knocked around. The women lost their hats and their careful coifs were blown to bits not to mention many skirts that were lifted to the waist. Men in dark suits were dusted with the fine clay particles that constitute the soil there.

Poor Christo. This was pretty much a fiasco from top to bottom, but I guess it was fun in an unintentional way.