Weekly Photo Challenge: Extra, Extra-ordinary

The following are a few photos I took of “The Gates” in Central Park for two weeks in February of 2005. “The Gates” was an installation by Christo and Jeanne-Claude (1935-2009) of 26 miles of orange fabric gates, as you can see in the photos. These were extra, extra-ordinary. attracting thousands and thousands of visitors from all over the world.

At that time, I was working only a few blocks from Central Park, so I used to go over there early in the mornings before work which gave me good morning light to take photos, like the one used in the header.  There was also much snow during those two weeks which I think also adds something to the photos.

Photo taken early in the morning with the sun coming up in the East and shinning on the orange gates making them especially vivid.

The Gates around the ice-covered pond in Central Park with the Plaza hotel in the background.

This is my swatch (2″x 2″) of the fabric used in “The Gates.”  In Central Park at the commencement of this event, a few young people were handing out swatches, but that stopped after a few days.  Then later, near the end of the two-week event, I saw a young man, who looked like he was selling drugs, but I knew what he was carrying.  He looked like a drug dealer, just loitering about, looking for buyers.  I approached him, and whispered, indiscreetly,  “Do you have a swatch?”  He looked around and pulled one out of his pocket and gave it to me for free.  I got 3 altogether, I think, during the two-week event.

 

Yours truly in front of one row of gates one evening after work.  Whenever I look at this photo I feel as tired as I felt when the photo was taken.