French street artist JR is set to transform Paris's historic Pont-Neuf bridge into a massive 400-foot-long "cave" installation in June 2026, marking the 40th anniversary of the legendary wrapping of the same bridge by artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude. The temporary art installation will completely transform the oldest bridge in the French capital from June 6-28, 2026.
In his Parisian studio, surrounded by black and white cutouts and collages that are characteristic of his work, JR sketches with charcoal while wearing his signature black glasses and hat. The photographic montages show the famous bridge, located in the heart of the capital, covered with sharp-edged rock formations where only the shape of its arches allows recognition of the Pont-Neuf. These images represent the next project by the renowned street artist and photographer.
The installation will create an "immersive artwork" that pedestrians can walk through, serving as a tribute to Christo and Jeanne-Claude. JR was contacted by the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation and the Friends of Paris Bridges association to create this homage. In 1985, the artist couple had wrapped the monument in fabric for two weeks, but it took them ten years to bring their project to fruition and overcome resistance, particularly from politicians including then-Paris mayor Jacques Chirac.
"For Christo and Jeanne-Claude, obtaining authorization to create the 'Pont-Neuf Wrapped' was one of the greatest challenges of their career," emphasizes Christo's nephew, Vladimir Yavachev, who manages their projects, in a foundation statement. However, Paris is no longer the museum-city of the 1980s, and JR's experience has been dramatically different.
"Once the first drawings were completed, there was of course extensive work with the City of Paris," JR explains. "Even though it's very complex as a project, my task is made easier by following in their footsteps." He obtained approval without difficulty, with Mayor Anne Hidalgo even praising the idea as "formidable" in the foundation's statement. Compared to his predecessors' endless negotiations, only two years will have elapsed between the city's "yes" and the installation of the "cave" next spring.
The 42-year-old artist acknowledges his good fortune in benefiting from "all the work that was done at the time by Christo and Jeanne-Claude, who really fought for years to realize their project." The city has also become accustomed to hosting spectacular contemporary art projects, such as the wrapping of the Arc de Triomphe in 2021, a posthumous work by Christo and Jeanne-Claude. "Paris is a city that knows how to welcome monumental art. We saw this with the Olympic Games," JR notes.
Like Christo's wrapped bridge, the future "cave" represents a technical feat and will be mainly made of fabric. "On a project like this, I have to work with engineers, with builders. We have to think about structures, about weather conditions," explains JR, who specifies that "hundreds of people from all trades" are participating in the construction. The bridge will remain "accessible to everyone, free, day and night," the artist emphasizes, though buses and cars will be prohibited during the installation period.
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 similarity with the "Pont-Neuf Wrapped" is that JR's artwork has been "financed by private patronage, without recourse to public funds," the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation specifies. The project represents both a technical challenge and an artistic homage to the pioneering work of the legendary artist duo who first transformed the historic bridge four decades ago.
