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| Surrounded Islands | |
|---|---|
| Title | Surrounded Islands |
| Artist | Christo and Jeanne-Claude |
| Year | 1980–1983 |
| Location | Biscayne Bay, Miami, Florida |
| Medium | Fabric installation, floating barriers, anchoring systems |
| Dimensions | 11 islands; approx. 6.5 km of pink fabric |
| Owner | Christo and Jeanne-Claude Estate |
Surrounded Islands
Surrounded Islands was a large-scale environmental art installation created by Christo and Jeanne-Claude in Biscayne Bay, Miami, Florida between 1980 and 1983. The project involved enclosing eleven natural islands with floating sheets of fluorescent pink woven polypropylene, transforming views from Key Biscayne to Downtown Miami and creating intersections with works by Robert Smithson, Andy Warhol, Frank Stella, James Turrell, and public spaces associated with Pérez Art Museum Miami. The initiative intersected with municipal agencies such as Miami-Dade County and environmental groups including The Nature Conservancy and scientific institutions like University of Miami and Florida International University.
Surrounded Islands comprised eleven islands in Biscayne Bay National Park and near Miami Marine Stadium that were ringed with 6.5 kilometers of pink fabric, anchored to float between the mangrove edges and open water. The installation engaged audiences from aerial viewpoints at Miami International Airport and from maritime vantage points near PortMiami, producing photographic documentation that entered collections at Museum of Modern Art and Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. The project required coordination with federal entities including the National Park Service and state regulators such as the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude developed Surrounded Islands following earlier works like Running Fence and Valley Curtain, expanding their practice of site-specific, temporary interventions in landscapes. Influences and dialogues around the project included engagements with Isamu Noguchi's public sculptures, Richard Serra's site work, and conceptual strands from Land art practitioners like Michael Heizer. The artists framed the islands as actors within visual ecology, referencing aerial photography traditions exemplified by Ansel Adams and Edward Burtynsky, and seeking to negotiate visibility within urban contexts such as Miami Beach and Coral Gables.
Permitting and logistics required multi-year negotiations with agencies including the United States Coast Guard, Federal Emergency Management Agency for storm considerations, and local authorities such as City of Miami planners. Environmental assessment involved marine biologists from University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and consultations with Audubon Society chapters and Coral Reef Alliance members. Engineering solutions were developed with firms linked to projects at Kennedy Space Center and docks at Port Everglades. Financial backing mixed private fundraising, sales of preparatory drawings exhibited at Galerie Maeght and documentation distributed through galleries like Lisson Gallery and museums such as Tate Modern.
The installation used industrial woven polypropylene produced by manufacturers with experience supplying materials for infrastructural projects including those at John F. Kennedy International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport. Barges and tugs associated with companies servicing Port of Miami and Miami River operations delivered anchored floatation systems designed in collaboration with naval architects who had worked on parts of Hudson River Park and Battery Park City projects. The work employed riggers familiar with installations at Metropolitan Museum of Art and stage crews connected to productions at Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. Scientific monitoring during deployment involved teams from Florida Atlantic University and Rosenstiel School, who collected baseline data comparable to studies done by Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
Surrounded Islands drew diverse responses from critics at publications like The New York Times, Artforum, and Art in America and from civic actors including Mayor of Miami offices and environmental NGOs such as Sierra Club. Supporters linked the work to urban revitalization initiatives affecting Wynwood and to cultural tourism encompassing venues like Bayside Marketplace and Vizcaya Museum and Gardens. Critics raised concerns paralleling debates around projects by Robert Smithson and policy disputes familiar from Love Canal activism, prompting congressional briefings in which stakeholders from Florida Legislature and federal agencies participated. The artists’ meticulous documentation—photographs by Jean-Michel Folon and portfolios held at Guggenheim Museum Bilbao and Centre Pompidou—helped solidify the work’s international reputation, influencing subsequent environmental art by practitioners such as Maya Lin and Olafur Eliasson.
Although the installation was dismantled after the predetermined exhibition period, monitoring programs initiated by the artists’ team continued in partnership with Florida Department of Environmental Protection and academic centers including University of Miami and Florida International University. Data informed mangrove restoration projects coordinated with Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces and conservation plans related to Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserve and Everglades National Park. Surrounded Islands remains represented in archives at institutions such as Smithsonian Institution and in collections at Pérez Art Museum Miami, influencing public art policy at municipalities like City of Key West and inspiring pedagogical case studies at universities including Yale School of Art and Harvard Graduate School of Design.
Category:Works by Christo and Jeanne-Claude