3 Fascinating Artists Who Will Sweep You Off Your Feet

Known for their monumental installations, this artist duo has transformed both public spaces and vast landscapes by partially or entirely covering them with swathes of fabric. In 1969 they enveloped a part of the Australian coast, and in 1983 they came for the islands of Miami's Biscayne Bay. For several days in 1985 they "wrapped" Paris' Pont Neuf, a "happening" for which they gained international recognition. It was followed by Berlin's Reichstag in 1995. The installations — as spectacular as they are temporary — have been welcomed the world over. Whether they're showing a distinguished monument in a new (and rather opaque) "light," or acting on the natural world in the land-art pieces for which they're known, familiar spaces suddenly appear markedly foreign. Throughout the years, the couple has constructed a remarkable body of work that hasn't escaped the notice of some of the world's premier art institutions. The Centre Pompidou had planned to honor Christo Vladimiroff Javacheff and Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon, who died in 2009, with a Spring 2020 exhibition and a wrapping of the Arc de Triomphe. The homage has been delayed until a later date, but it's the perfect time to get acquainted with this renowned duo.

Learn more about Christo and Jeanne-Claude on their site and their Instagram account.

With his book of birds-eye images La Terre vu du ciel ("The Earth Seen from Above"), Yann Arthus-Bertrand has been one of the most popular photographers in France for the last 20 years. This globe-trotting ecologist continues to capture some of the world's most beautiful landscapes and has already made several documentaries on the wonders of our planet. Deeply committed to the environment, his feature film entitled Home (2009) encouraged audiences to acknowledge the urgent need to preserve our ecosystems. His documentary Human (2015) brought viewers a reflection on humanity, compiling hundreds of interviews from over 60 countries. Covering subjects as varied as love, homosexuality, and daily life, Arthus-Bertrand couples these considerations with aerial images that will take your breath away.

Easy to recognize thanks to his sunglasses and famous hat, JR is France's resident street-art icon. Photographing new acquaintances and passerby in tight close-up shots, he blows the images up to an XXL and pastes them on roofs, walls, and even monuments. Celebrating the beauty of people all over the world, this committed humanist's work has been spotted in Rio de Janeiro, Shanghai, New York, and even in Mexico. At the US-Mexico border in 2017, he displayed an enormous photograph of a Mexican child looking across the border to the United States. The piece was a huge success and was shared and re-posted on social media all over the world, denouncing Trump's plan for a border wall between the two countries.

Check out JR's works on his site or on Instagram account.