Elie Hirschfeld Acquires Christo's 'The Gates'

Elie Hirschfeld has acquired the unique original artwork, "Christo (b. 1935) - The Gates (Project for Central Park, New York City)," depicting the historic life-size installation in Central Park in 2005, at a recent auction at Christie's Contemporary Art sale. The purchase was part of a $495 million session at the auction house.

"The Gates" is a work that depicts the blooming of the 7,503 fabric saffron colored fabric panels - each 16 feet tall and varying in width from 5 feet 6 inches to 18 feet according to the 25 different widths of walkways, on 23 miles of walkways in Central Park. The gates were spaced at 12 feet intervals, except where low branches extended above the walkways. The gates and the fabric panels could be seen from far away through the leafless branches of the trees. The work of art remained for 16 days, then the gates were removed and the materials recycled.

"As a neighbor living on Central Park, I loved looking at the Gates from my window and enjoyed my regular park jogs enhanced by the beauty of the experience," said Elie Hirschfeld. "This is a piece that brings back those wonderful memories."

The grid pattern of the city blocks surrounding Central Park was reflected in the rectangular structure of the commanding saffron colored poles while the serpentine design of the walkways and the organic forms of the bare branches of the trees were mirrored in the continuously changing rounded and sensual movements of the free-flowing fabric panels in the wind.

The people of New York continued to use the park as usual. For those who walked through The Gates, the saffron colored fabric was a golden ceiling creating warm shadows. When seen from the buildings surrounding Central Park, The Gates seemed like a golden river appearing and disappearing through the bare branches of the trees and highlighting the shape of the meandering footpaths.