CHRISTO AND JEANNE-CLAUDE: THE GATES AND UNREALIZED PROJECTS FOR NEW YORK CITY Begins February 12

Christo and Jeanne-Claude: The Gates and Unrealized Projects for New York City opens February 12, marking the 20th anniversary of The Gates, the artists’ monumental work of temporary public art.

Installed in Central Park in February 2005, The Gates consisted of 7,503 saffron-colored gates adorned with free-flowing fabric that spanned 23 miles of pathways and transformed the iconic park for its 16 days on display. The immersive 2025 exhibition at The Shed brings the spirit and vision of Christo and Jeanne-Claude to life. It offers visitors an unprecedented opportunity to explore the couple’s artistic journey, rekindling memories for those who witnessed The Gates and unveiling hidden stories for new audiences.

“The Shed is a leader in innovative art and ideas and is proud to partner on this incredible look at Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s signature contributions to public art,” said Meredith “Max” Hodges, CEO of The Shed. “The legacy of The Gates is profound, having inspired many public art projects that followed. This exhibition allows audiences who may not be familiar to reflect on the work and find meaning for it in today’s world. This exhibition will create a rich media experience as well as an in-depth narrative around Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s impact. It showcases the grand scope of what went into bringing The Gates to Central Park.”

The first part of the exhibition includes original artworks by Christo, such as drawings, scale models, and components from the Central Park installation itself, as well as photographs and videos. The exhibition includes a virtual, animated model of The Gates on a large-scale map of the original project location, designed by technology studios Dirt Empire and Pixels Pixels. These elements guide visitors through the 25-year journey of negotiations and planning that culminated in the final project’s realization.

The second part showcases a selection of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s visionary proposals for New York City that, though never realized, reveal the duo’s ambitious and innovative spirit and their deep connection to the city they called home from 1964 until their deaths in 2020 and 2009, respectively. Altogether for the first time in the United States, these works will be presented through scale models and digital reproductions of Christo’s drawings, offering a glimpse into the creative processes behind the duo’s large-scale public art projects.

Christo and Jeanne-Claude: The Gates and Unrealized Projects for New York City is curated by Pascal Roulin and presented in partnership with the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation, with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies.

The exhibition will also be complemented by an ambitious augmented reality experience in Central Park developed by Dirt Empire and Superbright and powered by Bloomberg Connects, the free arts and culture app. It brings a portion of the original experience to new, virtual life on smartphones and leverages technology to share the arts with new audiences. The experience will be along marked paths from East 72nd Street and 5th Avenue to Cherry Hill in the park.   

Additionally, both visitors on-site at The Shed and those who cannot experience the exhibition in person can learn more on Bloomberg Connects, which features bespoke audio, video, and text content about both the exhibition and other works at The Shed. Bloomberg Connects users can access information about the augmented reality experience within each of the Bloomberg Connects guides of the Central Park Conservancy, The Shed, and Christo and Jeanne-Claude.