L'Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped, a posthumous art installation by Christo and Jeanne-Claude, September 2021, Paris, France
L'Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped, a posthumous art installation by Christo and Jeanne-Claude, September 2021, Paris, France (© Bruno de HOGUES/Getty Images)
An icon is ‘Wrapped’
To celebrate World Art Day, we’re taking a look at one of the greatest triumphs (pun intended) of public art - last autumn’s ‘L’Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped’, by the late artists Christo and wife Jeanne-Claude. Completed and staged 16 months after Christo’s death at age 84, ‘Wrapped’ was the fruition of an idea 60 years in the making. On view from 18 September to 3 October 2021, the project required 269,000 sq ft of recyclable silvery-blue polypropylene fabric that completely covered the monument. The fabric glistened and glimmered with the changing light of Paris. The pleated fabric was held in place by nearly two miles of red rope.
© Bruno de HOGUES/Getty Images