Walk Through History: Nelson-Atkins to give peek into Kansas City’s past

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art is set to take visitors on a walk through history as a generous gift gives us a look into Kansas City’s past.

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art announced on Thursday, May 8, that the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation has given a generous exhibition of art related to the archival material of the 1978 Wrapped Walk Ways project. The project vividly transformed the Jacob L. Loose Memorial Park.

Museum leaders noted that about 2.5 miles of park pathways were wrapped in yellow nylon fabric by Christo, of Bulgaria, and his partner Jeanne-Claude, to revolutionize the way visitors viewed the park.

“While this project lasted a handful of days, it had a permanent impact on those who experienced it,” said Julián Zugazagoitia, Director & CEO of the Nelson-Atkins. “Visitors were compelled to experience what art meant to them and should mean to others. It also united a devoted group of disparate community members who passionately contributed to this display.”

Museum officials indicated that the Foundation’s gift included 18 works by Christo as well as 35 photographs by Wolfgang Volz, permits, correspondences, engineering plans, a documentary film reel and original components that trace the project’s history.

“Although Christo and Jeanne-Claude conceived their monumental Wrapped Walk Ways project as temporary, its legacy lives on through this generous gift,” said Stephanie Fox Knappe, Sanders Sosland Senior Curator, Global Modern and Contemporary Art and Head, American Art. “Not only does it commemorate an unexpected and engaging temporary intervention in one of our city’s most beautiful parks that helped put Kansas City on the contemporary art world map in 1978, but it also celebrates the lasting friendships between the artists and those who collaborated with them—some of whom are now core supporters of the Nelson-Atkins.”

Leading up to the project’s 50th anniversary, the Nelson-Atkins said it will mount a small preview exhibition to open between June 28 and Jan. 18, 2026. The exhibit will highlight sections of the Foundation’s gift with a call to the community to share their own memories.

According to the museum, the gift considerably amplifies its small holdings to include a 2-part drawing by Christo, a collage made of gelatin silver print photograph of Loose Park pre-project on top of which Christo drew a saffron path and 2 chromogenic prints that document what visitors experienced.

Museum leaders noted that the acquisition will allow them to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the public art project undertaken by an influential and internationally renowned couple of contemporary artists. Known for their monumental environmental projects, Christo and Jeanne-Claude considered social interactions to be crucial to their self-funded projects.

In Kansas City, the Nelson-Atkins indicated that Christo gathered volunteers to help realize the project. It ignited interest in contemporary art not only in the region but across the country.

For more information about the museum or the project, click HERE.

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