The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 21, 2025

1969

Christo

(American, 1935–2020)
America
collage: photograph, graphite, wax crayon, fabric, cotton, twine, staples, black crayon
Overall: 71.1 x 55.9 cm (28 x 22 in.)
Gift of Agnes Gund for the Fiftieth Anniversary of The Print Club of Cleveland 1971.48
© Christo 1969
Location: Not on view

Description

Christo's monumental, but temporary interventions into cityscapes and landscapes challenge habitual perception. Predictability is interrupted when a familiar building is covered in fabric, for instance, and becomes a new focus of attention. Christo's comment on the transitory nature of his projects, "I seek the involuntary beauty of the ephemeral," indicates that he relishes the memory of creating a satisfying yet unrepeatable experience. Christo's projects include hanging a curtain across a valley in Colorado and wrapping the Pont-Neuf in Paris the and Reichstag in Berlin. To finance these costly undertakings, Christo makes many drawings, collages, and prints. The proceeds from these artworks are then used to fund the installations.
  • “Annual Report for 1971.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 59, no. 6 (June 1972): 147–179. Reproduced: p. 161 www.jstor.org
    Cleveland Museum of Art, “Art Museum Acquires Three Works of Art by Christo Christo & Jeanne-Claude to Give Lecture at CMA,” April 24, 1996, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives. archive.org
  • Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Early Works, 1958-69. Martin Gropius Bau (September 8-December 30, 2001).
    Martin Gropius Bau Museum, Berlin; September 8-December 30, 2001. "Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Early Works, 1958-69," exh. cat. no. 140, p. 93.
    American Drawings from the Permanent Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 19-July 12, 1998).
    Cleveland, Ohio: The Cleveland Museum of Art; 4/19/98 - 7/12/98. "American Drawings from the Permanent Collection."
    Changing Dimensions: Works on Paper by Sculptors. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 22, 1995-January 24, 1996).
    Cleveland Museum of Art, 1995-1996: Changing Dimensions: Works on Paper by Sculptors: November 22, 1995-January 24, 1996, no cat.
    America Draws. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 28, 1984-March 17, 1985).
    Ten Years in Review. The New Gallery of Contemporary Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 8, 1978-January 6, 1979).
    Year in Review: 1971. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 28, 1971-February 6, 1972).
  • {{cite web|title=Wrapped Wool Bales: Project for Keith Murdoch Court, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne|url=false|author=Christo|year=1969|access-date=21 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1971.48