The Gates© New York City Project to be Featured in HBO Documentary

ARLINGTON, Va., Feb. 25, 2008 (VNS) – The Gates©, which for 16 days in February 2005, brightened a wintry New York City with 23 miles of orange banners that were supported by 7,500 frames made of recyclable vinyl, is the focus of a new HBO® documentary to debut on the network Tuesday, Feb. 26, at 10 p.m., Eastern and Pacific times.

“The Gates, Central Park, New York, 1979-2005” was one of the most complex artistic projects undertaken by world-renowned artist Christo and his wife Jeanne-Claude. The documentary, “THE GATES,” chronicles their 24-year effort to convince city officials and civic groups to host the project, its eventual approval in 2003 by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and the dramatic impact the soaring saffron-colored banners had on a cold, snowy city, its residents and visitors from Feb. 12-27, 2005.

One of Christo’s and Jeanne-Claude’s requirements for the project was that the materials used be recyclable. Vinyl’s recyclability, along with its durability and color-fastness were the principal reasons vinyl was used for the 7,500, 16-foot tall frames. The Gates were originally to be all steel, but that would have required digging holes into Central Park. Lighter-weight and less costly vinyl frames could be anchored on metal bases on top of the ground.

After the Gates were dismantled, the vinyl frames and nylon banners were sold to Nicos Polymers and Grinding, and shipped to the firm’s Nazareth, Pa., remanufacturing facility. The frames were ground into 750,000 pounds of flake, and the regrind was sold to Plastival Inc. of Montreal for transformation to vinyl fencing and gateposts.

One of the directors of “THE GATES,” Albert Maysles, a renowned filmmaker and cinematographer, was asked by Christo and Jeanne-Claude in 1979 to film their interactions with city officials and civic groups as they tried to convince them to be host to the grand art exhibit that was still a concept. The documentary also features the reactions to the project from residents and international tourists, and the artists’ own reactions to their finished work -- all set against New York City’s windy, snowy and rainy landscape.

“THE GATES” will also be broadcast on “HBO on Demand” Feb. 27 at 7:15 p.m. Eastern time and on Feb. 28 at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time. For additional dates and times of its broadcast in your area and for more information on “THE GATES,” please visit www.hbo.com/docs/thegates.