Wolfgang Volz
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Christo and Jeanne-Claude THE GATES, Central Park, New York City, #4, 1979-200438 x 26 in. -
Running Fence, Sonoma and Marin Counties, California (horizon view), 1972-197617 1/2 x 27 in. -
Running Fence, Sonoma and Marin Counties, California (view with sea), 1972-197618 1/4 x 27 in. -
The Umbrellas, Japan U.S.A. (California), 1984-199122 x 28 in. -
The Umbrellas, Japan U.S.A. (Japan), 1984-199112 1/4 x 27 in. -
The Wall, 13000 Oil Barrels, Gasometer, Oberhausen, Germany, 1998-199926 1/2 x 21 1/4 in. -
The Wall, 13000 Oil Barrels, Gasometer, Oberhausen, Germany (top view), 1998-199918 1/2 x 27 in. -
Valley Curtain, Grand Hogback, Rifle, Colorado, 1970-197218 x 27 in. -
Wrapped Floors and Stairways and Covered Windows, Architecture Museum, Basel, Switzerland, 199526 1/2 x 18 in. -
Wrapped Reichstag, Berlin (Top View), 1971-199520 x 27 in. -
Wrapped Trees, Fondation Beyeler and Berower Park, Richen-Basel, Switzerland, 1997-199818 x 27 in. -
Wrapped Trees, Fondation Beyeler and Berower Park, Richen-Basel, Switzerland (Close view), 1997-199818 3/4 x 27 in. -
Wrapped Walk Ways, Loose Park, Kansas City, Missouri, 1977-197817 1/2 x 27 in.
Christo, Jeanne-Claude and Wolfgang Volz decided to work together very early on, and this exclusive relationship has given rise to something unique. We can no longer separate Christo, Jeanne-Claude and Wolfgang Volz from one another and are instead confronted with an indestructible trinity. These photographs show that Wolfgang Volz is in no way a cold documentary note-taker; he is part of the action. The way he photographs the works of Christo and Jeanne-Claude is unlike anyone else. His pictures are themselves fixed elements in the works, authorised by the artist twosome. They are a part of the realisation with his emotions showing through them. Long years of collaboration have resulted in a visual symbiosis which seems to us to be unique.
Wolfgang Volz's achievement lies in the fact that he summons forth the memory of these projects. To rework the range of atmospheres and facts into a visual text is a major challenge for a photographer. Dramatic factors stand alongside epic factors. Each "still" photo taken by Wolfgang Volz does not merely fix the work in time but creates it. Wolfgang Volz becomes the eye of Christo and Jeanne-Claude. For what is the work of Christo and Jeanne-Claude other than a monumental snapshot which raises the transitory to the state of a vision? Volz’s photographs generate retrospective images of a captivating and unforgettable fata morgana.

