SIGNED typewritten letter with postcard

Item Details

ca. late 1970s

Typewritten letter SIGNED “Jeanne-Claude Christo” + double-sided postcard with an image of Christo's “Running Fence,” Sonoma and Marin Counties, CA (1972-1976). 

This letter was probably written to the artist's New York City dealer, John Gibson. Gibson founded his gallery in 1967 and initially sub-titled the gallery name, Projects for Commissions. Once stating that he was “interested in selling people the Brooklyn Bridge or the Eiffel Tower,” early on Gibson centered the majority of the gallery's direction on finding donors to fund large scale outdoor projects. He was behind Christo's infamous Valley Curtain, Rifle, Grand Hogback, Colorado (1971-1972). Valley Curtain was a tremendous feat of engineering and coordination. It took 2 attempts to install the piece, with wind first destroying it and then almost a year later, the totally remade curtain lasted just 28 hours before the wind once again threatened it. Christo was one of the artists in Gibson's seminal 1969 exhibition, “Ecologic Art,” a group show featuring drawings, photomontages, texts, and models. This show was the first exhibition to center on the theme of what is often referred to as ecological art, work which focused on conceptual interventions and ways to reclaim and improve the natural environment.