The dismantling of the 7,500 “Gates” in Central Park begins today. Taking them down “will be easier than the installation because there will not be any need to be careful. The 5,290 tons of steel will be melted down and recycled – The aluminum is going to become cans of soda and the fabric will be shredded and turned into carpet padding. Then all that will be left of “The Gates” will be the memories, and the T-shirts, coffee mugs, posters, watches and baseball caps. There will also be the coffee table book, as there is for most of their projects. Christo spent yesterday morning with Wolfgang Volz, the photographer, gathering pictures for the book.”