Christo builds vivid yellow ribbon bridge across Italian lake

Artist Christo has laid 100,000sq m of vivid saffron-yellow fabric across Italy’s Lake Iseo for his latest piece, The Floating Piers.

The fabric covers 3km of piers, constructed from a modular floating dock system made from 220,000 polyethylene cubes that undulate with the movement of the waves. It connects Sulzano to Monte Isola and reaches to the island of San Paolo, continuing into some pedestrian streets. Visitors can access the piers for free 24/7, dependent on weather conditions.

“Those who experience The Floating Piers will feel like they are walking on water, or perhaps the back of a whale,” says Christo.

The project was first conceived by artistic duo Christo and Jeanne-Claude in 1970. This is the first major project realised by the 81-year-old Bulgarian-American artist since his partner Jeanne-Claude passed away in 2009. It is entirely funded by Christo, from planning and construction to removal and recycling, through the sale of his early work from the 1950s onwards.

The duo is famous for its epic-scale public art such as The Wrapped Reichstag. The Floating Piers are in situ until 3 July 2016.