Christo
(Bulgaria, United States of America 13 Jun 1935– )
- Title
- Wrapped Paintings
- Year
- 1968
- Media category
- Sculpture
- Materials used
- stretched canvases, tarpaulin, rope
- Dimensions
-
300.0 x 162.0 x 18.0cm
- Signature & date
- Signed and dated l.l. verso, pencil "Christo 1968".
- Credit
- John Kaldor Family Collection at the Art Gallery of New South Wales
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program - Accession number
- 249.2011
- Copyright
- © Christo
- Location
- Not on display
- Further information
The surrealist artist Man Ray was the first artist to wrap objects as a way of making them strange. Wrapping has the paradoxical effect of concealing an object while accentuating its larger geometry and heightening our curiosity about it, encouraging us to make an imaginative leap in order to interpret what we see or what lies beneath.
Christo began wrapping and packaging objects in the late 1950s. His early works made use of items from daily life – such as books and boxes – which he draped, folded and bound in fabric. Later he collaborated with his wife Jeanne-Claude to wrap entire buildings and environments. While visually the folds of fabric in their works refer to classical forms from art history, the process of wrapping relates more broadly to cultural practices of preserving, shrouding and concealing.
In Wrapped Paintings we assume that the rectangular objects inside the packing are paintings but can only imagine what they look like.
- Bibliography (5)
-
Wayne Tunnicliffe (New Zealand; Australia) (Editor), John Kaldor Family Collection, Art Gallery of New South Wales, 2011, 62 (colour illus.), 64, 69 (colour illus.). illustration on page 62 is a detail
Adam Free (Australia) (Author), Journey to now: John Kaldor art projects and collection, Adelaide, 2003, 40 (colour illus.), 60.
Alexander Tolnay (Author), David Bourdon, Lawrence Alloway (Author), Wolfgang Volz, Christo and Jeanne-Claude: early works 1958-1969, 2001.
Nicholas Baume (Australia) (Author), Museum of Contemporary Art (Australia, estab. 1989), From Christo and Jeanne-Claude to Jeff Koons: John Kaldor Art Projects and Collection, 1995, 42 (colour illus.), 82.
Nicholas Baume (Australia) (Editor), Christo. John Kaldor Art Project, 1990, Sydney, 1990, 60 (colour illus.). cat.no.15
- Exhibition history (6)
-
Christo. John Kaldor Art Project, 1990, Art Gallery of Western Australia, 02 Mar 1990–14 Apr 1990.
Christo. John Kaldor Art Project, 1990, Art Gallery of New South Wales, 12 Sep 1990–25 Nov 1990.
From Christo and Jeanne-Claude to Jeff Koons: John Kaldor Art Projects and Collection, Museum of Contemporary Art, 12 Dec 1995–17 Mar 1996.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude: early works 1958-1969, Martin-Gropius-Bau, 08 Sep 2001–04 Nov 2001.
Journey to Now: John Kaldor Art Projects and Collection, Art Gallery of South Australia, 18 Apr 2003–06 Jul 2003.
John Kaldor Family Collection Artist Rooms #1 - Christo, Gosford Regional Gallery & Arts Centre, 01 Feb 2013–01 Apr 2013.
