The Floating Piers Installation to Open in Italy
The environmental artist Christo finally completes his floating walkway in Italy.
Bulgarian artist Jeanne-Claude may have passed on nearly a decade ago, but her legacy lives on thanks to her husband Christo, who worked alongside her to create unique art installations. On June 18, Christo is set to unveil The Floating Pier Installation, a walkway that will span 3 km (1.86 miles) and connect Monte Isola and San Paolo to Lake Iseo in Sulzano, Italy.
The walkway will be constructed out of 220,000 floating polyethylene cubes merged together to create a modular floating dock system. Once in place, the cubes will be draped in a shimmering fabric that will transform the walkway into a dazzling display that changes from red to gold in the light. Even after the walkway touches dry land, the fabric-covered path will continue a further 1.5 km into the streets of San Paolo and Sulzano – merging water and land seamlessly. The mountains serve as the best vantage point to catch a glimpse of red and gold stream as it stretches across the lake.
The Bulgarian-born artist, known simply as Christo, first conceived the idea of “The Floating Piers” with his wife and partner Jeanne-Claude in 1970. Despite her death in 2009, Christo has continued with their joint projects, including “Over The River” (Colorado) and “The Mastaba” (UAE).
“The Floating Piers” installation is scheduled to open on June 18 and will be accessible until July 3. For more information in the installation, click here.