Wrapped Reichstag

The Artists• Christo and Jeanne-Claude • works include the wrapping of the Reichstag in

Berlin, Pont-Neuf bridge in Paris, 24-mile-long artwork called Running Fence in Sonoma and The Gates in New York City's Central Park.

• Flew in separate planes: in case one crashed, the other could continue their work.

• This shows their passion for art

Running Fence in Sonoma Pont-Neuf bridge in Paris

The Gates in New York City's Central Park

The Artists• Jeanne-Claude died, aged 74, on November 18,

2009, from complications of a brain aneurysm• Artists have denied that their projects contain

any deeper meaning than their immediate aesthetic impact.

• They wanted to create works of art or joy and beauty and to create new ways of seeing familiar landscapes

• Art critic David Bourdon has described Christo's wrappings as a "revelation through concealment."

About Wrapped Reichstag• Convinced elected Members of Parliament,

going from office to office, writing explanatory letters to each of the 662 delegates and innumerable telephone calls and negotiations.

• 25 February 1995 after a 70 minute debate at the Parliament and a Roll Call vote, the Bundestag allowed the project to go ahead.

• The result of the roll call vote was: 292 in favor, 223 against and 9 abstentions.

About Reichstag

• Built in 1894, burned in 1933, almost destroyed in 1945, it was restored in the sixties, but the Reichstag always remained the symbol of Democracy.

About Wrapped Reichstag

• More than 100,000 m2 of fireproof polypropylene fabric, covered by an aluminum layer

• 15 km of rope were needed• Wrapping began on 17 June 1995 and was

finished on 24 June. • The spectacle was seen by five million visitors

before the unveiling began on 7 July• It was wrapped for 11 days. After that, the

materials were taken down and were recycled

About Wrapped Reichstag

• Total perimeter: 1,520.3 ft / 463.4 m

• The Materials

• Length of yarn used for weaving: 48,836 miles / 70,546 km manufactured by Bremer Woll-Kammerei, Bremen, Germany

• Silver polypropylene fabric (fire-retardant B1): 119,603 sq yd / 100,000 sq m woven by Schilgen, Emsdetten, Germany

• Total weight of fabric: 135,582 lbs / 61,500 kg

Describing Wrapped Reichstag

• A building wrapped in a white fabric• Sewn according to the architecture of Reichstag• In Berlin, Germany• Roads surrounding the building, and many houses

too, and its architecture, its intricate design of the building stands out above the building around it.

Analysis of Wrapped Reichstag

• Its blue rope and white cloth showed Democracy, as blue represents happiness while white represents peace

• Its innovative, out-of-the-world design encourages a new perspective of art, and allows people to boldly create pieces of art

• The sieves made by the fabric gives us an impression of curtains being drawn , covering the inside and the outside from both perspectives

Interpretion of Wrapped Reichstag• Convey the message of what will it be like, if the building

was not restored when it was severly burned, and was taken down instead.

• Play with the human mind, curiosity and emotions• When wrapped, people tend to wonder about the building

before it was covered, as many took for granted with what they have.

• People will not take too much notice of it, nor pay attention to its details of the building, as they thought it will always be there for viewing.

• However, when wrapped, people will try to recall the image of Reichstag, but it was futile as they realise that they did not pay close attention and appreciate the building before.

Interpretation of Wrapped Reichstag

• The art also play with our emotions. When covered, we would wow people, and be impressed with the artwork.

• When it came to wondering what the building looks like before, we would be frustrated, curious and it spurs our imagination

• It also reflects on the human mind, where everything is blank, white, when we are clueless about something, as though it had vanished

Interpretion of Wrapped Reichstag

• In a nutshell, it conceals the known appearance of them, blocking our linkage between sight and memory, testing our conceptualisation of known object

• For a more general meaning, it conveys the message that people should not take what they have for granted

Evaluation of Wrapped Reichstag• Passion for art can take you everywhere,

which is shown from this 24 year project for the couple.

• Spur us to think big, do big.• It captivates our interest, and our many

emotions were surfaced in us all at the same time, impressed, curiosity, frustration (please add more emotions, just any) and many more

I like this art work

• Unique, out of the world• Tests memory skills, brings out many different

emotions at the same time• A very important message shown that we

should not take things for granted and should always appreciate things first before it vanishes