Jeanne-Claude Has Died

Over the years, you've probably been peripherally aware of some nutjob, would-be artist named Christo doing things like this:



and this



and this



Well, all of those projects and several more were co-created by Christo's wife, Jeanne-Claude. The two of them worked together for 51 years making really odd, useless, beautiful images. They never took any kind of outside funding or sponsorship for their projects. They paid for everything with money they raised by selling drawings, paintings, and plans to collectors with a lot of cash. They never left any kind of footprint, always making sure the materials for their projects were disposed of in environmentally friendly ways. They were in love and made art for half a century and I think that's pretty cool. I just read on CNN.com that Jeanne-Claude died Wednesday of complications related to a brain aneurysm. So, in honor of someone who simply made the world a more interesting place, I thought I'd share some images from the most recent (and my favorite) Christo/Jeanne-Claude project, The Gates.







Honestly, I think the world would be a better place with more saffron-colored flags.