The Gates Are Back In New York!

Look at these amazing orange “gates” providing a colorful walkway through New York’s Central Park! It’s all part of a celebration of 20 years of “The Gates!”

This is the incredible work of two visionary artists: Christo and Jeanne-Claude…more of their life in a minute but first, this is what they did to New York’s Central Park 20 years ago:

I found this picture online….here is what you are looking at:

“Installed in Central Park in February 2005, the artwork consisted of 7,503 saffron-colored gates adorned with free-flowing fabric that spanned 23 miles of pathways and transformed the iconic park.”

It was truly an historic work of art…the creation of more than SEVEN THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED individual gates adored with fabric like this:

Why do I know? Because this is a piece of the actual fabric – I own it! You see, “The Gates” were so monumental that they did it again – with a twist!

“The Gates” Are Back…Virtually!

Look at the “gate” right above the white button on my iPhone…notice how the base seems to be “hovering” above the ground?

Yes, you can see “the gates” again right now in New York – as long as you bring a phone – to download an app that shows them to you virtually!

See my wife’s iPhone screen? Those are “the gates”: thousands of them…but they are only there virtually – all around where you stand! And as you can see from my wide shot behind her, there isn’t anything really on the path in front of her….here’s another look – I shot this video of her with her phone showing the art while walking:

Yes, “The Gates” are back with a work of spectacular virtual art- and it’s pretty cool! You can walk all over the park and be prompted to begin connecting to the virtual art all around you!

And look at this: the actual sun itself will shine through the virtual gates as well!

There is depth to the virtual art, and it actually moves over you as you pass by!

Here’s some more of this “virtual art” that you pass under as you walk through the park:

As you can see, you can capture images on your phone that show the depth and texture of the design…really something! Here’s how this all came together:

“In partnership with the Central Park Conservancy and New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, the exhibition is complemented by an interactive, augmented reality experience of The Gates in Central Park, accessible through Bloomberg Connects on a mobile device. Visitors to the park between February 12 and April 16 will be able to view roughly five percent of the original installation through the app.”

It really was cool as it looks so real through your phone! The best part? Volunteers were everywhere to make the download and launch of the app smooth and easy and they also gave us a piece of the actual fabric used in real life!

Now, a bit of history ab out the two visionary Artists behind this work of art:

Christo and Jeanne-Claude were born on the same day: June 13, 1935—he in Gabrovo, Bulgaria, and she in Casablanca, Morocco. Jeanne-Claude passed away in 2009, and Christo died in 2020, both in New York City, where they had moved in 1964. Christo and Jeanne-Claude realized monumental projects around the world, including Wrapped Coast, One Million Square Feet, Little Bay, Sydney, 1968–69; Running Fence, Sonoma and Marin Counties, California, 1972–76; Surrounded Islands, Biscayne Bay, Greater Miami, Florida, 1980–83; The Pont Neuf Wrapped, Paris, 1975–85; The Umbrellas, Japan–USA, 1984–91; Wrapped Reichstag, Berlin, 1971–95; The Gates, Central Park, New York City, 1979–2005; The Floating Piers, Lake Iseo, Italy, 2014–16; The London Mastaba, Serpentine Lake, Hyde Park, 2016–18; and L’Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped, Paris, 1961–2021.

Yes their “wrapped” art works included the L’Arc de Triomphe” in Paris, and even a wrapped island!

It was so much fun, and just another example of how there is always something unique going on in Central Park!

I captured this video of the marbled sky over the park, and if you walk through it, the park will continue to offer up surprises like this:

Yes, Central Park Has A Castle!

Here’s the story of Belvedere Castle, sitting in the middle of the park just to the west of “Turtle Pond”…see more here:

This view of Belvedere Castle from the other side of Turtle Pond is truly stunning, and serene as well, like all of the park.

Now about all those turtles in Central Park:

These Turtles love to come out when the sun is out to get a tan…here’s a look:

See more video of the Turtles of Central Park – plus their story – by clicking on my story here:

I will be exploring more of this incredible oasis as well – but remember the time I was in New York and got my “walk on?”

196 blocks to be exact!

It was all part of my “Hitch Hiking” series, where take a fun hike and tie it in to a Hitchcock classic – in this case “Rear Window!”

See it all here!

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Categories: Art, Books / Media, Exotic Travel, Memoirs, nature, New York, Pop Culture, Real Estate, Travel, Travel Adventures, Travel Memoir

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