This film takes a poignant, in-depth look at the concept and realization of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s project The Umbrellas, presenting the artists at their most triumphant and most vulnerable moments—from the exaltation of the project’s opening day through unexpected tragedies at the end. The artists chose sites with contrasting cultures, among people who were unsophisticated about art: a rice-farming valley in the Japanese province of lbaraki, 72 miles north of Tokyo, and a cluster of cattle ranches in the rolling hills of Southern California, 60 miles north of Los Angeles. In October 1991, as planned, the 1,340 blue umbrellas unfurled in the dense green foliage and rain-dripped autumn light of the Japanese valley. On the opposite side of the Pacific Ocean, the 1,760 yellow umbrellas burst open on dry, golden-colored grass, glimmering in brilliant California sunlight.