Christo

Wrapped Globe

The world from Christo’s perspective: a veiled globe rests upon the back of a reclining person; the Eurasian land mass appears underneath a thin foil; on the subject’s back is a mysterious tattoo, just below the globe.


This collage is an elaborate, handmade work by the artist Christo. He used a photo of a globe from the 1960s, wrapping it in translucent foil, and binding it with thin threads. The motif is surrounded by masking tape and cardboard, materials that the artist often liked to use. Included is a grid for locating the world within the work, and numbers on the sides for measurement and order.


The handwritten title of his work is WRAPPED GLOBE (EURASIAN HEMISPHERE). With this title he draws a direct link to an earlier work he completed for Time Magazine in 1989, which portrayed another covered globe, veiling the American continent with dark threads.


Christo's works are an expression of transience and elegance. They make the essential visible, and challenge the viewer's gaze.
 

The edition Wrapped Globe, limited in number, is personally signed and numbered by the artist.



Wrapped Trees III
Beautifully wrapped trees

In mid-November 1998, after the trees had shed their leaves, the celebrated artist duo composed of Christo and his artistic partner and wife Jeanne-Claude embarked on their impressive project Wrapped Trees in the grounds of the Fondation Beyeler. More than 170 trees in the gardens and the adjacent field were wrapped, using some 65,000 square yards of polyester fabric and 14 miles of rope.


The print Wrapped Trees III documents the planning phase of the project for the Fondation Beyeler and Beyeler Park in Riehen. Christo and Jeanne-Claude first became known after aligning themselves with the Nouveaux Réalistes, although they were never official members of the group. They made their breakthrough with projects that saw them wrapping buildings, industrial objects, and famous works of architecture such as the Reichstag in Berlin.
 

Art by Christo and Jeanne-Claude is unmistakable, whether it entails wrapping up the German Reichstag or creating floating, pink fabric borders for Floridian islands. When these artists cover monuments with their fabric, they create entirely unique sights. “It’s not about hiding, it’s about emphasizing”, Christo explained.


Although the installations are temporary, they do leave some lasting legacies: sketches and collages of the projects, ably drafted by Christo, tell the story of these remarkable visions. The ideas at the heart of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s work reappear before our eyes.


The project “Wrapped Fountain”, planned for La Fontana de Jujol in Barcelona’s Plaza d'Espana, was conceived in 1979. The collage dates from the year 2009, but the project remains unrealized. Complete with labels and plans, the sketch provides an insight into both the fountain and the planned, wrapped artwork. Another project, also unrealized, is presented in the lithograph “Wrapped Building, Project for #1 Times Square”.


In an interview with German magazine Die Zeit, Christo described the theory behind the wrapping: “Our artwork mirrors reality, that’s why I am so fascinated by it. We are showing real life, but are not doing this in a museum or on a stage. Our projects are not theatrical performances.” The unique artistic ability and extraordinary impact of the duo’s work shines through, even in the sketches. The monumental structures appear bold yet delicate.
 

In 1995, the pair wrapped Germany’s parliament building, the Berlin Reichstag. The project drew over five million visitors, making it one of the most-visited pieces of contemporary art in the world.

Hannah Hör

Christo Vladimirov Javacheff

June 13, 1935	Born in Gabrovo, Bulgaria
1953 - 1957	Studied Art in Sofia, Bulgaria and Paris, France
2020	Died at home in New York City, USA

Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon

1935	Born in Casablanca, Morocco
1952	Studied Latin and Philosophy at the University of Tunis, Tunisia
2009	Died in New York City, USA

Christo & Jeanne-Claude

1958	Jeanne-Claude and Christo met in Paris in 1958
1961	First collaboration: “Stacked Oil Barrels and Dockside Packages”, Cologne Harbor, Germany
1962	In the early collaboration “Iron Curtain”, Christo and Jean-Claude block off a Paris street with several dozen oil barrels, a gesture meant to evoke the Berlin Wall.
1968	“5,600 Cubicmeter Package”, documenta IV, Kassel, Germany
1969	“Wrapped Coast” Little Bay, New South Wales, Australia
1972	“Valley Curtain”, Rifle, Colorado, USA
1983	“Surrounded Islands”, Biscayne Bay, Florida, USA
1985	“The Pont Neuf Wrapped”, Paris, France
1995	“Wrapped Reichstag”, Berlin, Germany
2016	“Floating Piers”, Lake Iseo, Lombardy, Italy

Tate Britain, London, UK
Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, Australia
Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
Museum Ludwig, Cologne, Germany
Sprengel Museum, Hanover, Germany

Solo Exhibitions

2013	OP + POP, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, Germany
2012	Poesie der Reduktion – Minimal, Concept, Land Art, MUMOK, Vienna, Austria
2004	Christo and Jeanne-Claude from the Roof: “The Gates” Project in Central Park, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, USA
2003	Approaching Objects, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York City, USA
2001	Christo und Jeanne-Claude, Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, Germany
1998	Premises – Invested Spaces in Visual Arts, Architecture and Design from France, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York City, USA
1997	Deep Storage – Arsenale der Erinnerung, Neue Nationalgalerie Berlin, Germany
1987	Christo – Surrounded Islands, Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst, Ghent, Belgium
1984	Christo – Arbeiten zum Surrounded-Islands-Projekt, Neue Nationalgalerie Berlin, Germany
1978	La Biennale di Venezia, Venice, Italy
1977	documenta VI, Kassel, Germany
	Christo - The Running Fence, Kestnergesellschaft, Hanover, Germany
1972	documenta V, Kassel, Germany
1968	documenta IV, Kassel, Germany
	Christo Wraps the Museum, Museum of Modern Art, New York City, USA
1966	Christo – Storefront, Leo Castelli Gallery, New York City, USA