" A Walk in the Park"

by Pat Mersman

Central Park February 2005

 

 

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More then seven thousand sheets of silky orange fabric, straddling twenty-three miles of pathways in the Central Park...growing and blowing overhead in the ice-cold sunlight of the drabbest month of the year...for two weeks only, then to be gone forever. Thanks to the dedication of the artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude, this magic would linger for a lifetime in the inner eyes of the lucky few (over a million, actually) who were able to be there.

I had to be there.

Walking with my camera in the early mornings, I was captivated by the polyphonic interplay of twisting naked tree branches, park benches, fences, and lampposts with the "Gates", which were rigid and rectangular, yet also billowing with lively energy.

The rhythmic repetition of straight lines and curves in all the man-made structures played with the exposed bare natural forms, inviting me to choose now one pathway, then another, with no destination in mind beyond the simple pleasure of wandering through the park.

My object in mounting the show is simply to share my wonderful experience in New York with people who were not able to be here.

In keeping with the Christos' practice, a percentage of any profits from the sale of these photographs will be donated to the Central Park Conservancy.

Pat Mersman

Gates main gallery

 

 

 

Changes Art Gallery