Christo’s Umbrellas Unfurl as Rain Abates : Art: Hundreds of viewers turn out in Japan. The parasols’ creator is to be at today’s opening of 1,760 more in Tejon Pass.

Under a drizzly, overcast sky, outdoor artist Christo unfurled 1,340 blue umbrellas in the lush countryside of Japan Tuesday, the opening act to the blossoming of a similar forest in the Tejon Pass just after dawn today.

The umbrellas--each of which is almost 20 feet tall and weighs 488 pounds--started opening at 5 a.m. Wednesday, Japan time. Four hours later, almost all were open.

Hundreds of farmers, housewives and children turned out in the Sato River valley, 75 miles north of Tokyo, to see the event the conceptual artist has been cooking up for the past six years.

They clapped and cheered as roving construction crews began cranking the 20-foot tall umbrellas open one by one as roosters crowed in the new day. Special teams wearing hip boots and wet suits waded into the river to open about 90 parasols perched above the water on steel supports.

“Oh, they’re so beautiful,” said Namiyo Kubo, a Japanese landscape artist who spent the night in her car waiting for umbrellas to spring open.

The artist--known for his massive, landscape-altering works--was on hand for the opening in Japan. He is expected to arrive in California today in time to see at least part of the opening of the second phase, 1,760 yellow umbrellas lining the Tejon Pass along Interstate 5 at the Los Angeles-Kern county line.

The project had been delayed one day because of heavy rains at the Japan site.

Christo would not allow the umbrellas in the Tejon Pass to open even though weather was near perfect. He said the project--expected to cost more than $26 million--must open on the same day because the theme of the artwork centers on the differences between the two countries in landscape and sociology.

“It’s fine with the nice weather over in California and here, we have the humidity and the green,” the artist told reporters as he rushed around supervising the opening of the 12-mile-long Japanese project.

The time difference between the two countries enables the umbrellas to be opened on the same calendar day, although the two events will take place 16 hours apart.

The delay meant several California events had to be postponed. But a breakfast for 2,500 residents--in a field with dozens of umbrellas--was too big to change. So instead of eating amid the art, the 1,300 people who attended ended up in a field of what appeared to be blunt-nosed, shrouded missiles waiting for launch.

“It was fun anyway,” said Jack Hunt, president of Tejon Ranch, which co-sponsored the event with the Rain for Rent company of Bakersfield that did the final assembly of the umbrellas.

Thousands of tourists are also expected to be on hand for the opening today, which should begin about 7:30 a.m. and could cause traffic jams on the Golden State Freeway, one of the critical transportation arteries in the state.

The California Highway Patrol, which normally has about five patrol cars in the 18-mile area that the artwork covers, will have about 20 cars and a patrol helicopter.

“We are gearing up for lots and lots of people,” said Sgt. Jack Skaggs of the Tejon substation, which is in the middle of the umbrella project.

“Our main aim is to keep I-5 moving.”