A retrospective of the life and work of Christo and Jeanne-Claude
“Nobody discusses a painting before it has been painted. Our projects are discussed and argued about, pro and con, before they are realized.” —
Christo
The work of the artists
Christo and Jeanne-Claude transcends borders, resists categorizing, and embraces contradiction.
This is the only large-format book that includes all of their projects, from Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s works from 1958 to urban and rural temporary works of art, such as
The Gates in Central Park, the
Wrapped Reichstag in Berlin, and
Running Fence in California.
Part biography, part critical analysis, part catalogue, this
lavish Collector’s Edition,
designed by Christo himself, gives a detailed overview of the life and work of Christo and Jeanne-Claude, from early drawings and family photos to plans for future projects. It features
hundreds of previously unpublished photographs, drawings and plans for realized works, an incisive and detailed history spanning the entire oeuvre, and in-depth interviews.
In addition to a thorough photographic documentation of all of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s work, the book includes the
transcript of a conversation between the artists and Paul Goldberger, the
last conversation about her work that Jeanne-Claude had before her death in late 2009. This book is an eloquent homage to Jeanne-Claude, and a celebration of the work of two artists whose imagination has affected the landscape of every continent.
Also available in an Art Edition of 100 copies, with an original pigment/silk-screen print, signed by Christo. Copies no. 1 to 6 are accompanied by original works of Over The River, Project for Arkansas River, State of Colorado or The Mastaba, Project for United Arab Emirates
The artists
Christo and Jeanne-Claude began their collaboration in 1961, and lived in New York City since 1964. Jeanne-Claude died in 2009; Christo died in 2020. Their large-scale projects include Wrapped Coast, Australia, 1968–69; Valley Curtain, Rifle, Colorado, 1970–72; Running Fence, Sonoma and Marin Counties, California, 1972–76; Surrounded Islands, Biscayne Bay, Florida, 1980–83; The Pont Neuf Wrapped, Paris, 1975–85; The Umbrellas, Japan–USA, 1984–91; Wrapped Reichstag, Berlin, 1971–95; Wrapped Trees, Riehen, Switzerland, 1997–98; The Gates, Central Park, New York City, 1979–2005; The Floating Piers, Lake Iseo, Italy, 2014–16 and The London Mastaba, Serpentine Lake, Hyde Park, 2016–18. Christo and Jeanne-Claude's temporary work of art L'Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped, Project for Paris is scheduled for September 18–October 3, 2021.
The photographer
Wolfgang Volz has worked with Christo and Jeanne-Claude as the exclusive photographer of their works since 1971. He was also project director (with Roland Specker) for Wrapped Reichstag, Berlin, 1971–95 and (with Josy Kraft) for Wrapped Trees, Riehen, Switzerland, 1997–98, and was in charge of The Wall – 13,000 Oil Barrels, Gasometer Oberhausen, Germany, 1998–99 and Big Air Package, Gasometer Oberhausen, Germany, 2010–13. His close collaboration has resulted in many books and more than 300 exhibitions in museums and galleries around the world.
The author
Paul Goldberger is the Pulitzer Prize-winning architecture critic of The New Yorker, where, since 1997, he has written the "Sky Line" column, and is the author of several books, including Why Architecture Matters (2009) and Christo and Jeanne-Claude (2010, for TASCHEN). He lectures widely on architecture, design, historic preservation and cities, and has taught at both Yale School of Architecture and the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude
Edition of 1,000
Hardcover in
clamshell box, 13 x 17.3 in., 33.50 lb, 754 pages
