Christo andJeanne-Claude’s

“RUNNING FENCE”“RUNNING FENCE”

Christo andJeanne-Claude’s

“RUNNING FENCE”

and wife team named Christo and Jeanne-Claude are an example of artists who combine artistic concepts with unusual materials.

Christo was born in Bulgaria in 1935, while his wife Jeanne-Claude was born in France, also in 1935. The artistic duo is best known for their “wrapping” projects in which they wrapped large buildings, such as the German House of Parliament or the Pont Neuf bridge in Paris, in fabric. After a few weeks or months, the projects were taken down. Their artworks endured only

Can you name a work of art? Chances are you will choose a painting, drawing, or sculpture. Most people accept that these things are works of art. They are objects designed to give the viewer pleasure, knowledge, or understanding. One reason these forms are accepted as artworks is that they are forms that the public knows and accepts. But how do you decide if something new is a work of art?

For many years, artists have been making works of art using unusual materials. These include objects like old newspapers and tickets, rocks and sticks, and even words. Many people have difficulty accepting nontraditional works as real artworks.

One type of art, conceptual art, might exist only in the mind of the artist. A husband

DID YOUKNOW?

One of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s best-known works was a series of 7,503 orange banners hung in New York’s Central Park.

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Credits: © Mary Altaffer/AP Images

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fence.” He also explained that they wanted their fence to bring people together, rather than keep them apart. Most importantly, they wanted it to be beautiful.

A project like “Running Fence” challenges our ideas about works of art. Can something be a work of art if it is beautiful in a new and strange way?

in the minds of viewers and in documentation. Movies were often made. The pair kept records of everything they did to create the work.

One of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s largest projects was “Running Fence.” It was a white nylon fence supported by thin metal poles and steel cable. It ran for 24.5 miles (40 km) across the northern California landscape. The sound the fence made was important to the artists, so it hung loosely to wave in the wind. “Running Fence” crossed hills, small roads, and major highways. The artists negotiated with landowners and local governments for permission to build the fence. They worked with lawyers, engineers, filmmakers, and construction companies. The entire project took four years, from 1972 to 1976. The fence was taken down after two weeks.

What was the meaning of “Running Fence?” Christo told an interviewer in 2010, “We were very eager to design the route of the Fence to cross fourteen roads, so people could see it where it crossed a road. We wanted the entire length of the Fence to run in relation to man-made structures—a house, a farm, a barn, a farmer’s

Christo and Jeanne-Claude

More than 300 people worked on “Running Fence.”

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Credits: top: © Monika Graff/UPI /Landov; bottom: © Jim McHugh/Sygma/Corbis

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