Artist Inflates Giant Cave Structure Over Paris Bridge

The oldest bridge in Paris has begun to vanish this week as an artist began inflating a giant cave over the Pont Neuf. The monumental, rocky illusion is swallowing the 17th-century landmark, which has carried Parisians across the river for more than 400 years.

By Thursday, it looked as if a prehistoric cliff had risen in the heart of the city. The inflation process, which was carried out overnight after being delayed by bad weather, is the most dramatic stage yet of a project more than a year in the making.

One of the most ambitious public artworks Paris has seen in decades, which has been funded by the sale of the artist's work and a handful of corporate partners, does not open to the public until June 6. The structure is 120 meters long and 18 meters tall, built almost entirely from air with 80 fabric arches filled with 20,000 cubic meters of it and weighing only about five tons.

The fabric was hand stitched by 25 artisans in a village in Brittany. Nothing digs into the historic stone. Cut the air and the cliff would sink like a held breath, a collapse the engineers spent weeks rehearsing in a hangar at Orly airport.

The artwork, called La Caverne du Pont Neuf, is a tribute to a Parisian artistic legend. In 1985, artist Christo and his wife wrapped the same bridge in pale golden fabric. A square beside the bridge now carries their names. The idea is to bring mineral and nature back to the heart of the city.

The cave will be open around the clock from June 6-28, closing the bridge to traffic and visible from the quays, from passing boats, even from the top of the Eiffel Tower. When it comes down, the fabric will be reused or recycled.