Tuesday, February 26, 2008

A Tribute to The Gates








Tonight HBO is showing a documentary about The Gates, the February 2005 art installation in Central Park. If you heard about it or actually saw it, it was an amazing display of literally thousands of "gates" with orange-colored flaps that were spread out across the three mile expanse of the park. The Gates was the brain-child of the eccentric artists Christo and Jean-Claude who have created other massive public art projects like the wrapping of the Reichstag. Apparently it took more than 25 years for this project to be realized and, once it was, it was a huge hit with critics and the public alike. Oh, and it generated over $200 million in tourist revenue for the city.

I remember seeing The Gates, this audacious and dazzling thing, in 2005. Walking around it, part of me found it absurd but another part of me was grateful to live in a city that thinks art should be shared by all. My brother, an excellent photographer, took a whole bunch of pictures of it and did a great job. I'm happy to share these exclusive photos with Mr NYC readers.


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