(Gabrovo, Bulgarien 1935–2020 New York)
The Umbrellas (Joint project for Japan and USA), 1989, titled, signed and dated Christo 1989, and inscribed with technical data, graphite, charcoal, pastel, photography by Wolfgang Volz, crayon, enamel paint and topographic map, on thick paper, in 2 parts: 165 x 38 cm and 165 x 106.6 cm, in plexiglas box

We are grateful to Studio Christo, New York, for confirming the registration of the work in their archives.

Provenance:
Guy Pieters Gallery, Knokke-Zoute
acquired from the above by the present owner
European Private Collection

Exhibited:
Knokke-Zoute, Guy Pieters Gallery, Christo. The Umbrellas. Joint Project for Japan and USA, 18 June - 13 July 1989, exh. cat. 90/91 with ill.

“To Engage Their Bodies Entirely”
Christo on his legendary project ‘The Umbrellas’
An interview by Daryl Wee

Darryl Wee:
“The Umbrellas” is the only project that took place on two continents. How did the idea to work in Japan and the US simultaneously come about?

Christo:
“The Umbrellas” was designed to highlight the similarities and differences between the two richest countries in the world at the time, Japan and the United States. In a way, the process of getting the necessary permission reflected this. In Japan, we had to negotiate with 459 rice farmers in Ibaraki Prefecture, while in California we had only 25 cowboy ranchers to deal with.
In California, we had tremendous problems getting permission from the ranchers. In Japan, although we had many more people to convince, it wasn’t complicated. In contrast, we had a very difficult time persuading the government of Ibaraki and central government bodies in Tokyo to approve our project, but a much easier time with the state of California and federal government.

The other difficulty we faced was recruiting workers. For all our projects, we need non-skilled workers, paid above minimum wage — construction workers, carpenters, people involved in preparing the anchors of the umbrellas, for instance. Recruiting these workers was extremely difficult, as this was before the time of the internet. We had to go to the various colleges in southern California, colleges here in Japan, and talk to the young people, often after class.

I vividly remember giving a lecture at UCLA about “The Umbrellas”, and the first questions the American audience asked was, how much did it cost, and who paid for it?
At a similar talk I gave at the University of Tokyo, however, the first question the Japanese asked me was: why yellow, and why blue? These are simple things, but they really reflect different sensibilities in society, and the lives people lead.
(Deutsche Bank – Artmag – 98)