1961, three years after meeting Jeanne-Claude in Paris, Christo made a study of a mammoth project that would wrap one of the city’s most emblematic monuments. 60 years, 25,000 square meters of recyclable fabric, and 3,000 meters of rope later, the artists' vision finally came true. Discover their posthumous installation with this book gathering photography, drawings, and a history of the project's making.
Like most of Christo and Jeanne-Claude's work, L'Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped is temporary and runs for 16 days from Saturday, September 18 to Sunday, October 3, 2021. Carried out in close collaboration with the Centre des Monuments Nationaux, the historic structure is wrapped in recyclable polypropylene fabric in silvery blue and recyclable red rope.
A flâneur and photographer at once, Eugène Atget (1857–1927) was obsessed with walking the streets. After trying his hand at painting and acting, the native of Libourne turned to photography and moved to Paris. He supplied studies for painters, architects, and stage designers, but became enraptured by what he called “documents” of the city and its environs. His scenes rarely included people, but rather the architecture, landscape, and artifacts that made up the societal and cultural stage.
While anchoring his practice in the traditions of antiquity and the Renaissance, Auguste Rodin (1840–1917) paved the way for modern sculpture. From a very early stage, he was interested in movement, the expression of the body, chance effects, and the incomplete fragment. It was these elements that gave shape, and the impression of life, to such famous works as The Kiss and The Thinker.