Forty years after Christo and Jeanne-Claude, JR is preparing his transformation of the Pont-Neuf

On a large wooden table next to the Christmas tree in JR's Parisian studio, black and white cutouts and collages, the preferred colors of his works, are piled high. The artist, who received AFP in his studio, sketches them in charcoal, without removing his iconic black glasses and hat.

The photo montages show the famous bridge, located in the heart of the capital, covered with sharp-edged rock, where only the shape of its arches allows one to recognize the Pont-Neuf.

These are images from the street artist and photographer's next project. From June 6 to 28, 2026, the monument will be transformed into a "cave" that passersby can walk through, "an immersive artwork" in homage to Christo and Jeanne-Claude, explains JR.

Known like them for his monumental ephemeral creations around the world, he was contacted by the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation and the Amicale des ponts de Paris for this tribute.

In 1985, the artist couple wrapped the monument in fabric for two weeks. At the time, it took them ten years to bring this project to fruition and overcome the reservations, particularly political ones, such as those of the mayor of Paris at the time, Jacques Chirac.

"For Christo and Jeanne-Claude, obtaining permission to create the Pont-Neuf Wrapped was one of the greatest challenges of their careers," emphasizes Christo's nephew, Vladimir Yavachev, who manages their projects, in a statement from the foundation.

But Paris is no longer the museum-city of the 1980s.

"Once the first drawings were done, there was of course a whole process of working with the City of Paris," says JR. "Even though it's a very complex undertaking, it made my task easier to follow them."

A construction site involving "hundreds of people"

It received the green light without difficulty. Mayor Anne Hidalgo even praised it in the foundation's press release as a "fantastic idea".

Compared to the endless negotiations of his predecessors, only two years will have passed between the "yes" from the town hall and the installation of the "cave" next spring.

"I am fortunate" to benefit from "all the work that was done at the time by Christo and Jeanne-Claude, who really fought for years to realize their project," acknowledges the 42-year-old artist.

The city has also made a habit of hosting spectacular contemporary art projects, such as the wrapping of the Arc de Triomphe in 2021, a posthumous work by Christo and Jeanne-Claude.

For JR, "Paris is a city that knows how to welcome the monumental. We saw that with the Olympic Games."

Like Christo's wrapped bridge, the future "cave" represents a technical feat and will also be made primarily of fabric.

"On a project like this, I have to work with engineers, with builders. We have to think about the structures, the weather," explains JR, who specifies that "hundreds of people from all trades" are involved in the construction.

The bridge will remain "accessible to all, free of charge, day and night," the artist emphasizes. However, buses and cars will be prohibited for the duration of the installation.

In Paris, JR has already created a gigantic collage around the Louvre pyramid in 2019 and covered the Opera with another "cave" in 2023.

Another point in common with the "Pont-Neuf Wrapped" is that this work by JR was "financed by private patronage, without recourse to public funds", specifies the Christo and Jeanne-Claude foundation.