Wrapped Motorcycle/Sidecar (Project for Harley-Davidson 1933 VL Model)
View Similar Items
Christo and Jeanne-ClaudeWrapped Motorcycle/Sidecar (Project for Harley-Davidson 1933 VL Model) 1997
1997
About the Item
- Creator:Christo and Jeanne-Claude (1935 - 2020, Bulgarian, Moroccan, American)
- Creation Year:1997
- Dimensions:Height: 19.62 in (49.84 cm)Width: 21.87 in (55.55 cm)
- Medium:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:Santa Fe, NM
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1282352663
Christo and Jeanne-Claude
Motivated solely by a mission to spread joy and celebrate beauty through their work, Christo and Jeanne-Claude (1935–2020; 1935–2009) created riveting large-scale public art installations that pushed ephemeral art to an entirely unprecedented new level. While the pair created prints, photography and a range of other types of art, they’re best known for their installations — working with a combination of textiles and industrial materials, Christo and Jeanne-Claude created colossal site-specific sculptures and other projects that frequently included wrapping monuments, walkways and even coastlines in reams of fabric in order to draw attention and encourage viewers to experience familiar objects and places in entirely new ways.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude frequently incorporated nature’s forces into their works, creating billowing fence lines, enormous inflatable free-standing structures and colorful floating walkways. Partners in life and art, the pair designed installations that often took years or even decades to realize and lasted for only days or weeks. Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s preparatory works and detailed drawings and collages are today a testament to their intricate ephemeral masterpieces and legacy.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s stories, incredibly, began on the exact same day — on June 13, 1935, Christo Vladimirov Javacheff was born in Gabrovo, Bulgaria, and on the very same day in Casablanca, Morocco, Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon was born. While Jeanne-Claude received a broad education and a baccalauréat in Latin and philosophy, growing up in France, Switzerland, Morocco and Tunisia, Christo studied art from the age of six years old. He went on to study painting, drawing, architecture and sculpture at the National Academy of Art in Sofia before leaving Bulgaria to escape the Hungarian Revolution.
Christo spent time in Prague before a brief stint at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts, moving on then to Geneva and ultimately France. He made money by painting portraits for wealthy families. After being hired by Jeanne-Claude’s mother to paint three portraits of her, Christo met his future wife and collaborator. The pair created their first environmental installation, Dockside Packages and Stacked Oil Barrels, in 1961.
Together, Christo and Jeanne-Claude pursued increasingly ambitious projects, proposing to wrap everything from trees in Wrapped Trees, Foundation Beyeler and Berower Park, Riehen, Switzerland, 1997-98 to important public buildings including the Wrapped Reichstag, Berlin, 1971–95. They also created free-standing abstract sculptures such as the 5,600 Cubicmeter Package, billowing curtains such as Valley Curtain, Rifle, Colorado, 1970–72, and proposed installations in locations as far-flung as Dubai and Japan. These projects and others have been linked to the Pop art-adjacent nouveau réalisme movement.
Classically trained in drawing, Christo created preparatory sketches and collages for the projects, selling his artwork to independently fund the monumental temporary installations the pair erected. Meanwhile, Jeanne-Claude advocated for the pair’s artwork, speaking at public forums, sending proposals to municipal governments, and using her unique combination of compelling charm and stoic stubbornness to get their projects approved.
Devoted to their ideals of spreading joy and beauty, the pair accepted no commissions or commercial collaborations — all their installations were funded purely by the sale of their preparatory art. The last of their realized urban works, that 2005 project invited New Yorkers to go for a glorious walk through 7,503 saffron-fabric-draped portals along the pathways of Central Park. More than 4 million people did.
Christo’s wrapped sculptures, which he began making early in his career, as well as his preparatory works, are held in the permanent collections of museums and other institutions including the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Gallery of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Centre Pompidou. Jeanne-Claude died in 2009, and Christo continued to realize the pair’s planned projects until his own passing in 2020.
Find original Christo and Jeanne-Claude photography, mixed media works, sculptures and prints on 1stDibs.
- Subtle Was Rarely An OptionLocated in Santa Fe, NM"Subtle Was Rarely An Option" is a lithograph with chine-collé elements exemplifying Calvert's exploration of the "...conversations that develop between everyday objects of comfort ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Color-Field Interior Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- Kiss CrossBy Reza Farkhondeh & Ghada AmerLocated in Santa Fe, NMKiss Cross is a 2006 lithograph with brightly colored hand sewn elements by dynamic duo Ghada Amer and Reza Farkhondeh. Kiss Cross is from an edition of 25 plus artist and printers p...Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Prints
MaterialsMixed Media, Lithograph
- Dawn Suite 4Located in Santa Fe, NMEdition of 10Category
1980s Landscape Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- On AttendBy Antonio SeguíLocated in Santa Fe, NMEdition of 80Category
20th Century Dada Abstract Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- Dawn Suite 7Located in Santa Fe, NMEdition of 10Category
1980s Figurative Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- Magic Hand (Yellow)By Jiha MoonLocated in Santa Fe, NMJiha Moon's vibrant print Magic Hand (Yellow) draws from a wide range of cultural iconography. The intricate piece is a 2020 lithograph featuring appliqué, measures 24 x 19 1/4 inch...Category
2010s Figurative Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- The original Soviet poster from 1968, "American Imperialism is a World GendarmeLocated in PARIS, FRThe original Soviet poster from 1968, "American Imperialism is a World Gendarme (War, Racism, Provocation...)," stands as a vivid example of Soviet propaganda agitation. This poster ...Category
1960s Prints and Multiples
MaterialsPaper, Lithograph
- Original lithograph by Poulbot of a scene from the first world war. This lithogrBy Francisque PoulbotLocated in PARIS, FROriginal lithograph by Poulbot of a scene from the first world war. This lithograph is numbered 36/50 and hand signed by the artist. Francisque Poulbot, born in Saint-Denis on Februa...Category
1910s Prints and Multiples
MaterialsPaper, Lithograph
- Lotus Pool - Contemporary, 21st Century, Lithograph, Limited Edition, ChineseBy Yue MinjunLocated in Zug, CHYue Minjun, Lotus Pool Lithograph in color on wove paper “BFK Rives” Edition of 130 120 x 80 cm (47.2 x 31.4 in) Stamped Signature, numbered in Roman numerals In mint condition, as a...Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- Sheep Herd - Contemporary, 21st Century, Lithograph, Limited Edition, ChineseBy Yue MinjunLocated in Zug, CHYue Minjun, Sheep Herd Lithograph Edition of 130 120 x 80 cm (47.2 x 31.5 in) Stamped Signature, numbered in Roman numerals In mint condition, as acquired...Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- Maurice de Vlaminck - House in Rueil - Original LithographBy Maurice de VlaminckLocated in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CHMaurice de Vlaminck Original Lithograph Signed in the plate 1958 Title: House in Beauce Dimensions: 22 x 27 cm Reference: Catalogue raisonné Walterskirchen 275 Condition : Excellent Maurice de Vlaminck (1876 - 1958) Maurice was three years old when his family moved from Paris to Vésinet. He first pursued the same musical career as his parents, who were both musicians, leaving his home as a trained double-bass player in 1892 to move to Chatou near Versailles. After absolving his military service in Vitré Maurice Vlaminck worked as a musician until he accidentally met André Derain in 1900. It was Derain who kindled Vlaminck's artistic ambitions. He decided to become a painter and rented an old hut in which he and Derain shared a studio. A crucial turning point in Vlaminck's artistic development was a visit to a van Gogh exhibition...Category
1950s Impressionist Landscape Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- "Lorenzaccio" by Alphonse Mucha from Les Maitres de l'AfficheBy Alphonse MuchaLocated in Hinsdale, ILAlphonse Mucha "Lorenzaccio, a play in five acts and an epilogue by Alfred de Museet" Plate #114 Image Size: 15" x 11" 1896 Alphonse Mucha was born in Southern Moravia on July 24, 1860. At the age of seventeen the artist left his home, to work as a painter of stage decorations...Category
1890s Art Nouveau Figurative Prints
MaterialsLithograph