Paper Mache
Christo was an artist known for designing epic public art works that typically involved wrapping or spreading thousands of yards of fabric around buildings and other public structures, around islands and across canyons. He and his wife/artistic partner, Jeanne-claude, spent decades reimagining places like the Reichstag in Berlin, and the Pont Neuf bridge in Paris.
Do you remember when
Christo came to California in 1991 and created The Umbrellas which involved the simultaneous setup of 3,100 huge blue and gold umbrellas in Japan and California’s Tejon Pass?
The years of planning, fundraising, and dozens of presentations to government agencies and finally the installation of his monumental works were all part of his process in creating “site specific environmental installations.”
Christo died last year, but his legacy and work live on. This past week, hundreds of workers erected a posthumous installation when they wrapped the Arc de Triomphe in Paris with 33,000 yards of fabric. Did I mention that Christo’s projects are privately funded, are only on display for a few weeks and typically attract 2-3 million visitors? Art and culture tourism anyone?
Have you heard that there is an epic public art project underway in Yuba-sutter, albeit not in fabric, but in this case bronze?
Ours will be far more long lasting than an ephemeral Christo wrap. Bronze has been around for 6,000 years and the earliest bronze statues still in existence go back nearly as far.
A committee was formed over a year ago to create a bronze statue in honor of local western hero and rodeo industry legend, Cotton Rosser. The statue will be 1.25 times his life size and will depict Mr. Rosser on horseback. It will be placed in Marysville in the park on 1st Street where it will overlook the annual cattle drive that kicks off the Marysville Stampede. Our project is in good hands with the sculpture being created by noted western artists, Jeff Wolf and Bob Burkhart.
Want to help out? Bronze ain’t cheap as you can imagine. Make a donation of any size by contacting Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture at 742-ARTS or write to email@yubasutterarts.org.
(Paper Mache is a weekly column about the arts community by David Read, director of Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture.)