See photos of the conception and completion of "The Floating Piers" by artist Christo on Lake Iseo in northern Italy.
/ 18 PHOTOS
The Floating Piers
Christo in his studio working on a preparatory drawing for "The Floating Piers." Italy’s Lake Iseo is re-imagined with a new art project. "The Floating Piers" consist of 100,000 square meters of shimmering yellow fabric, carried by a modular dock system of 220,000 high-density polyethylene cubes floating on the surface of the water. Visitors will be able to feel like they are walking on water.
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The Floating Piers
"The Floating Piers" was initially drawn in 2015 in two parts.
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The Floating Piers
Artist Christo Vladimirov Yavachev presented his monumental installation "The Floating Piers" he created with his late wife, Jeanne-Claude, on June 16, 2016 during a press conference at Iseo in northern Italy.
— AFP - Getty Images
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The Floating Piers
At a factory in Fondotoce at Lago Magiore, 200,000 high-density polyethylene cubes are manufactured over a period of eight months before delivered to the project's storage in Montecolino, January 2016.
— Wolfgang Volz
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The Floating Piers
The felt that will cover the cubes underneath the yellow fabric is transported from Montecolino to San Paolo island by Elimast Helicopter Service, May 2016.
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The Floating Piers
Frames are attached underneath the cubes to the dead weight anchors on the lake bed with rope made of ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene, covered with a polyester protective layer and with a breaking load of 44,000 pounds, April 2016.
— Wolfgang Volz
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The Floating Piers
Workers push one of the frames underneath a floating element before connecting it with screws, April 2016.
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The Floating Piers
Workers start to encircle the island of San Paolo with the first floating elements, April 2016.
— Wolfgang Volz
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The Floating Piers
Floating elements connect the island of San Paolo with the island of Monte Isola on May 2016, Some 200,000 floating cubes create a nearly 2-mile runway connecting the village of Sulzano to the small island of Monte Isola on the Iseo Lake for a 16-day outdoor installation.
— AFP - Getty Images
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The Floating Piers
Christo gestured during an interview with the AP about his installation "The Floating Piers."
— AP
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The Floating Piers
A partial view of the monumental installation "The Floating Piers."
— AFP - Getty Images
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The Floating Piers
Christo stands on his installation.
— Reuters
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The Floating Piers
A part of the installation "The Floating Piers."
— Reuters
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The installation from a distance
— AFP - Getty Images
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The Floating Piers
A different view of the installation.
— Reuters
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The Floating Piers
A woman walks on the installation.
— Reuters
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A woman took pictures of the installation.
— AFP - Getty Images
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Bulgarian-born artist Christo Vladimirov Yavachev known as Christo stands on his installation 'The Floating Piers', on the Lake Iseo
"The Floating Piers" was first conceived by Christo and Jeanne-Claude together in 1970. It is Christo’s first large-scale project since Christo and Jeanne-Claude realized "The Gates" in 2005, and since Jeanne-Claude passed away in 2009. As with all of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s projects, "The Floating Piers" is funded entirely through the sale of Christo’s original works of art. After the 16-day exhibition, all components will be removed and industrially recycled.