Two Monuments, Two Cities

September — October 2021

Fabric panels are being unfurled in front of the outer walls of the Arc de Triomphe
Paris, September 12, 2021
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Photo: Wolfgang Volz
© 2021 Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation

In Paris and Washington D.C., the Autumn of 2021 presented two memorials that reflected the process of memory, struggle and loss — most recently due to the Covid-19 pandemic. On September 18th after 60 years of planning, Christo and Jeanne-Claude posthumously unveiled “L’Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped, Paris, 1961–2021” in the center of the Place de l’Étoile, located on the Champs-Élysées. This…