Swirly Gates

Photo By: Susan Hagen

by Susan Hagen

last-minute day trip!

When I came up from the subway near Central Park, expecting to hunt around for Christo and Jeanne-Claude's latest public art project, I was immediately blasted with the color orange — sometimes reddish, sometimes infused with glowing golden light. This $20 million project (funded privately by the artists) is a logistical miracle that has employed hundreds of workers and lined 23 miles of paths with 7,500 16-foot tall gates hung with pleated nylon panels. Animated by the chilly wind, the saffron-colored fabric provides an exhilarating contrast to the neutral colors of the winter landscape, and the topography of the park appears to be caressed by swooping curves of color.

Crowds of New Yorkers and visitors from around the United States and abroad filled the park on opening day, walking, pushing baby carriages and chatting. The artists, initially inspired by the continual movement of people walking in the city, have used gates as symbolic markers for celebrating the phases of a journey — an idea that seems particularly resonant in New York at this time. The brevity of the installation is also poignant. Christo and Jeanne-Claude have written: "Our works are temporary in order to endow the works of art with a feeling of urgency to be seen, and the love and tenderness brought by the fact that they will not last." All components will be recycled after the installation ends.

The artists have lived in New York since 1964. Their temporary art projects around the world focus on revealing the beauty and significance of large natural features and man-made structures. All take many years to plan and complete. The Gates (first proposed to the City of New York and rejected with a 107-page letter) took 26 years from conception to realization, so, in the few days remaining, it's certainly worth a quick trip up to New York to see this amazing project.

Christo and Jeanne-Claude: The Gates, Central Park, New York, 1979-2005, through Feb. 27. For more information, call 212-NEW-YORK.