christo & jeanne-claude show an extensive overview of works in progress in st. moritz

christo & jeanne-claude show an extensive overview of works in progress in st. moritz
all images courtesy of  galerie gmurzynska © christo

christo & jeanne-claude: works in progress
galerie gmurzynska, st. moritz
now through march 30, 2016

christo and jeanne-claude are internationally recognized for their outdoor artistic interventions. these large-scale works have adorned some of the most famous landscapes and buildings around the world, from new york’s central park to the reichstag building in berlin. since jeanne-claude’s passing in 2009, her husband and partner christo has pushed to bring their unrealized installations to life — some that the couple had been planning for almost 40 years. 

‘the mastaba’ was conceived as early as 1977

from now until march 30, 2016, galerie gmurzynska in st. moritz presents christo & jeanne-claude’s ‘works in progress’ — an extensive overview of their proposed projects, rendered through imaginative sketches, drawings and photo collages. the three installations underway include ‘the mastaba’ in abu dhabi; ‘over the river’ above the arkansas river in colorado; and ‘floating piers’ on lake iseo in italy.

the installation is to be set within a dramatic sand desert landscape surrounding abu dhabi 

christo and jeanne-claude had conceived the site-specific land art sculpture ‘the mastaba’ as early as 1977. set within a dramatic sand desert landscape surrounding abu dhabi, ‘the mastaba’ comprises an enigmatic cuboid shape particular to the islamic architectural tradition of the tribes and noble families of the arab peninsula. conceived as the largest sculpture in the world with a total height of 150 meters ‘the mastaba’ will eventually become the artist duo’s only permanent large-scale work.

‘over the river’ was first conceived by christo & jeanne-claude in 1992

the second work in progress on view at galerie gmurzynska is ‘over the river’, a project first conceived in 1992. the installation comprises nearly six miles of silver-toned fabric panels suspended atop a section of the arkansas river in colorado, which will create continuously changing visual fields. at the beginning of 2015, christo received the news that the federal district court upheld the bureau of land management’s (BLM) approval of the proposed work, marking a major victory toward making this two-week temporary work of art a reality — read more on designboom here.

the installation comprises nearly six miles of silver-toned fabric panels

the exhibition provides a first look at christo and jeanne claude’s most recent project ‘floating piers’. beginning in june 2016, italy’s lake iseo — 100 kilometers east of milan — will be connected by 70,000 square meters of shimmering yellow fabric , which covers a floating dock system, undulating with the movement of the waves. made in collaboration with germano celant, artistic director of the fondazione prada, ‘floating piers’ is slated to take place in the summer of 2016, from june 18 to july 3. read more about the installation previously featured on designboom here. 

fabric sheets will be suspended atop a section of the arkansas river in colorado

the reflective nature of the sheets will create continuously changing visual fields

the exhibition provides a first look at christo and jeanne claude’s ‘floating piers’

beginning in june 2016, italy’s lake iseo will be connected by 70,000 square meters of shimmering yellow fabric

the sheets cover a floating dock system, which undulates with the movement of the waves

visitors can experience ‘floating piers’ as they walk from sulzano to monte isola and to the island of san paolo

surrounding mountains offer a bird’s-eye view of a golden network of passageways 

after the exhibition of the installation in italy, all components will be removed and industrially recycled

‘floating piers’ is slated to take place in the summer of this year, from june 18 to july 3