501 - Christo & Jeanne-Claude* (Gabrowo 1935 - 2020 New York)

Christo & Jeanne-Claude* (Gabrowo 1935 - 2020 New York) The Gates print/paper 42 x 37 cm signed Christo SCHÄTZPREIS / ESTIMATE € 300 - 600 STARTPREIS / STARTING PRICE € 300 Christo and Jeanne-Claude Javacheff—born on June 13, 1935, in Gabrovo and Casablanca, respectively—rank among the most significant artist couples in international post-war art. Through their temporary, site-specific projects, they expanded the scope of sculpture and installation into the public realm, becoming defining figures of large-scale environmental and land art. Christo Vladimirov Javacheff studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Sofia; he left Bulgaria in 1956, traveling via Prague, Vienna, and Switzerland to Paris, where he met Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon in 1958. His early works—initially signed by him alone—consisted of objects such as cans, bottles, furniture, or vehicles that were bound with rope and wrapped. From 1961 onwards, Christo and Jeanne-Claude developed their monumental projects jointly; since 1994, these have been credited retroactively to both artists. Their work is characterized by the use of fabric, rope, and industrial materials, meticulous planning spanning many years, and the intentionally temporary nature of the projects. The artists financed their work independently through the sale of preparatory drawings, collages, and models, eschewing corporate sponsorship and public funding. Their best-known works include Running Fence in California (1976), Surrounded Islands in Miami (1983), Wrapped Reichstag in Berlin (1995), The Gates in New York’s Central Park (2005), and The Floating Piers on Lake Iseo (2016). Jeanne-Claude died in New York on November 18, 2009, and Christo passed away there as well on May 31, 2020. The project L’Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped—originally conceived in 1961—was realized posthumously in Paris in 2021 based on their plans, marking a late highlight of their collaborative body of work. PLEASE NOTE: The purchase price consists of the highest bid plus the buyer's premium, sales tax and, if applicable, the fee of artists resale rights and platform fee. In the case of normal taxation (marked ° at the estimate), a premium of 24% is added to the highest bid. The mandatory sales tax is added to the sum of the highest bid, the buyer's premium and platform fee. This amounts to 13% for paintings, drawings, graphic works and sculptures and 20% for photographs and all other items. The buyer's premium amounts to 28% in case of differential taxation. The sales tax is included in the differential taxation.