The Kassel-based photographer and art educator Dr. Klaus Baum has died. For decades, his life was closely linked to documenta. He accompanied the documenta exhibitions in 1964, 1968, 1987, and 1992 with his camera and headed the DOCUMENTA IX (1992) guide service.

Baum described his close collaboration with the Bulgarian-American artist Christo (1935-2020) as a special "awakening experience". In the context of documenta 4 (1968), Baum was responsible for the photographic documentation of Christo's sensational project "5,600 Cubicmeter Package": the gigantic column-shaped package filled with air that - after several unsuccessful attempts - was erected vertically in the Karlsraue. Baum's photographs from all phases of the project planning formed the basis for a photo book that is extremely rare today (Baierbrunn: Wort und Bild 1968).

In 2019, Baum presented the documenta archiv with a comprehensive body of documents and photographs.

More background on Klaus Baum here and here.