| Yesterday Mark and I joined Natasha and her crew to stroll through Central Park to experience The Gates. Now, before I go on about my opinion of the exhibit (other than the fact that it's insane to plan an outdoor exhibit in Manhattan in the dead of winter) I'll give the highlights of what The Gates are about. Christo and Jeanne-Claude developed the concept for The Gates in 1979 and on January 22, 2003, New York granted permission to the artists to realize their vision. The Gates are supposed to create a visual golden river appearing and disappearing through the bare branches of the trees, highlighting the shapes of the footpaths. This is accomplished by free-hanging, saffron-colored fabric panels that are suspended from the top of individual 'gates' (which are really just metal bars along the path) and hang down to 7 feet (2.13 m) above the ground and cover 23 miles of Central Park real estate. The project cost 30 million and lasts just 16 days. "What's the Point?" was the most common question we overheard along the way and the answer is this: "The luminous moving fabric underlines the organic and serpentine design of the walkways, while the rectangular poles are a reminder of the grid pattern of the City blocks around the park." Now for my opinion...
Despite the cold, now that I am back in my warm & happy home, I'll have to say that it was inspiring. It's good to know that NYC has the balls to say yes to an exhibit like this and it's nice to know that there is funding out there for artists that have a vision that breaks all the rules. Enjoy the pics! Kristin |
