New York, NY – The Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation, The Shed, Central Park Conservancy, NYC Parks, and Bloomberg Philanthropies today open a comprehensive, multiplatform celebratory retrospective of The Gates, the February 2005 public art installation in New York City’s Central Park by renowned artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude.

The retrospective marks the 20^th anniversary of The Gates and includes an innovative augmented reality experience in Central Park, powered by the Bloomberg Connects mobile app, as well as an exhibition at The Shed in Hudson Yards.

NYC Visitors and Residents can experience this historic retrospective, at each location, for a limited time beginning today through Sunday, March 23.

Central Park: The Gates Augmented Reality Experience in Central Park virtually creates several hundred gates along a portion of the original installation’s pathway between the East 72nd Street and 5th Avenue Entrance to Cherry Hill, on the west side of the park.

The innovative technology allows park visitors to see a reimagined version of The Gates by using their mobile device as a portal. The AR experience was developed collaboratively by The Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation, Dirt Empire, and Superbright. In coordination with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation and the Central Park Conservancy, the experience is available during daylight park hours, with signage along the AR route, and is wheelchair accessible along the paved pathways.

The experience is free via The Bloomberg Connects app, available for download from Google Play or the App Store, and here.

The Shed: Christo and Jeanne-Claude: The Gates and Unrealized Projects for New York City includes artworks, drawings, scale models and partial elements from the 2005 Central Park installation, as well as unrealized projects of the artists on view at select times throughout the week.

The exhibit at The Shed is curated by Pascal Roulin, celebrated for his 2022 curation of Christo and Jeanne-Claude. L’Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped at 21_21 Design Sight in Tokyo (June 13, 2022 – February 12, 2023).

Tickets are available on a choose what you pay basis. The Shed offers a suggestion price of $10. Tickets and timing can be found here.

More on Bloomberg Connects: Additionally, visitors both on-site at The Shed and those who cannot experience the exhibition in person can learn more on the Bloomberg Connects app, which features bespoke audio, video, and text content about both the exhibition and other works at The Shed.

About The Gates:
The Gates was a monumental work of temporary public art consisting of 7,503 saffron-colored gates adorned with free-flowing fabric that spanned 23 miles of pathways and transformed the iconic park. The individual gates were 16 feet tall and varied in width from 5 feet 6 inches to 18 feet depending on the different widths of the park’s walkways. The vertical poles were secured by narrow steel base footings, 613 to 837 pounds each, positioned on top of the paved surfaces. Free hanging saffron-colored fabric panels, suspended from the horizontal top part of the gates, came down to approximately 7 feet above the ground. The gates were spaced at 12-foot intervals.

Images, along with credits and descriptions, can be downloaded here.

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About Christo and Jeanne-Claude:
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.

Christo and Jeanne-Claude worked together since their first outdoor temporary work of art: Stacked Oil Barrels and Dockside Packages, Cologne Harbor, Germany, 1961. Before he escaped to the West, Christo studied painting, sculpture, architecture, and decorative arts at the National Academy of Art in Sofia for four years. All early works, such as Wrapped Cans, Wrapped Oil Barrels, Packages, Wrapped Objects, and Store Fronts, as well as all preparatory drawings, collages, and scale models are works by Christo only. All public projects and indoor installations, both realized and unrealized, are collaborative works by Christo and Jeanne-Claude.

More information on our website, Instagram and X.

About Bloomberg Philanthropies:
Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in 700 cities and 150 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on creating lasting change in five key areas: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg’s giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a philanthropic consultancy that advises cities around the world. In 2024, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $3.7 billion. For more information, please visit  bloomberg.org, sign up for our newsletter, or follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Threads, Facebook, and X.

About The Shed:
Under the leadership of CEO Meredith “Max” Hodges and founding Artistic Director Alex Poots, The Shed is a cultural institution of and for the 21st century. We produce and welcome innovative art and ideas, across all forms of creativity, to build a shared understanding of our rapidly changing world and a more equitable society. In our highly adaptable building on Manhattan’s west side, The Shed brings together established and emerging artists to create new work in fields ranging from pop to classical music, painting to digital media, theater to literature, and sculpture to dance. We seek opportunities to collaborate with cultural peers and community organizations, work with like-minded partners, and provide unique spaces for private events. As an independent nonprofit that values invention, equity, and generosity, we are committed to advancing art forms, addressing the urgent issues of our time, and making our work impactful, sustainable, and relevant to the local community, the cultural sector, New York City, and beyond.

About Central Park Conservancy:
The Central Park Conservancy is a private, not-for-profit organization that manages Central Park and is responsible for raising the Park’s annual operating budget. The Conservancy’s staff of more than 400 is responsible for all aspects of the Park’s stewardship, from day-to-day maintenance and operations to continued restoration and rebuilding projects. Additionally, the Conservancy operates the Park’s visitor centers, provides public programs, and serves as a resource for other NYC parks and for public-private partnerships around the world. For more information, please visit centralparknyc.org.

About New York City Department of Parks & Recreation:
NYC Parks is the steward of more than 30,000 acres of land — 14 percent of New York City — including more than 5,000 individual properties ranging from Coney Island Beach and Central Park to community gardens and Greenstreets. We operate more than 800 athletic fields and nearly 1,000 playgrounds, 1,800 basketball courts, 550 tennis courts, 65 public pools, 51 recreational facilities, 15 nature centers, 14 golf courses, and 14 miles of beaches. We care for 1,200 monuments and 23 historic house museums. We look after 666,000 street trees, and five million more in parks. We are New York City’s principal providers of recreational and athletic facilities and programs. We are home to free concerts, world-class sports events, and cultural festivals.

About Bloomberg Connects:
Bloomberg Connects offers free digital guides to cultural organizations around the world. The platform is part of Bloomberg Philanthropies’ longstanding commitment to supporting digital innovation in the arts. Bloomberg Connects makes it easy to access and engage with arts and culture from mobile devices when visiting in person, or anytime from anywhere. With dynamic content exclusive to each partner organization, the app provides a range of features including video, audio, and text; expert commentary; and way-finding maps. Follow Bloomberg Connects on Instagram, Facebook, and Threads for updates on new guide launches, exhibit highlights, and more.

Bloomberg Connects partnered with Dirt Empire and Superbright to build The Gates Augmented Reality experience. Dirt Empire is an Emmy-award winning visual and experiential design studio based in Brooklyn, NY.  Superbright is a hybrid research and development studio, using emerging technology as a medium for creative applications.

The Bloomberg Connects app is available for download from Google Play or the App Store.