Wrapping the MCA
Christo describes the materials and methods that were used for his MCA project.
Before I do sketches and drawings, and actually I try to position the ropes in such a way. Of course some of them is very difficult, because physically I have some workers, the same way, my projection is not exact, and I try to adjust it. And there is the scale model, the sketches, and somehow I need to translate that in physical proportion. In the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, physically was very easy, because we have a big ladder. Is only two-story building—barely two-story building—and is very easy for me to use this long ladder, that I can do [it] myself.
That project in Chicago was designed for the winter. We need to have very, very thick cloth. I remember always referring to create gothic folds. Like a gothic sculpture. Very angular folds. Because actually the fabric was the—how do you call—tarpaulin, which has a wax. Is not only heavy fabric, is have a special wax to, again, the humidity, and making, when the folds come down, they are broken, they are not roundish.