Christo (1935-) Bulgaria

Christo was born in Bulgaria as Christo Vladimirov Javacheff. Han studied at the National Academy of Art in Sofia and at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. After one semester, he traveled on to Paris in 1958, where he supported himself by painting portraits.
In 1958 he met his future wife Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon with whom he collaborated to create “environmental art” in which they “wrapped” Pont Neuf in Paris, the Running Fence in California, the Reichstag in Berlin and The Gates in Central Park, New York. The intention was to create a different experience of famous “landmarks.” There is no preserved artwork, only the preparatory drawings (collages) that have given their art its legendary character. Prior to 1994 the projects were simply signed “Christo,” but subsequently they began to name works from 1961 onwards as created by “Christo and Jeanne-Claude.” Jeanne-Claude passed away in 2009.