July 30, the New York Museum of Modern Art (NY MOMA) opens a very unusual exhibition. Wunderkammer: A Century of Curiosities paid tribute to the tradition of the creation of «rooms rarities». What is «cabinet of rarities» (or, as it is called, «Room miracles»)? Perhaps the Russian people will be closer to another the word Wunderkammer - «Kunstkamera». Everyone knows that the St. Petersburg Kunstkamera, which exhibited unique antiques and anatomical anomalies, was founded by Peter I and became the first museum in Russia. The idea of «Kunstkammer» Peter borrowed from the Dutch and British. In Europe, the first «classrooms rarities» appeared in the Renaissance. They exhibited all sorts of unusual items: imported from a trip fantastic and exotic objects, ancient artifacts, natural rarity, a work of art, and just weird things. Is not difficult to guess that after such Kunstkamera grown museums. Therefore, the value of «rooms miracles» in the history of art and culture can hardly be overestimated. Organizers of the exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art decided to show how the idea Kunstkammer is reflected in the works of artists of the XX and XXI century. The exhibition presents about 130 prints, books, drawings, photographs, design objects and sculptures.

Some of the works which will be presented at the exhibition, on display for the first time. This is particularly the nearly 2.5-meter engraving on wood The Songs of the Blacks and the Blues ( «Songs in bruises») famous Louise Bourgeois (Louise Bourgeois) , print« arched bridge of the screws, Condition II »artist pop art Klas Oldenburg (Claes Oldenburg) and lithography« white teeth »Daina Jim (Jim Dine). Of course, this exhibition could not do without the work of American surrealist Joseph Cornell (Joseph Cornell). This artist was famous for his fantastic designs from the very ordinary objects. His fanciful creation, he often put in boxes, glass front. Each of these boxes - miniature «Chamber of miracles».

Lovers «snovidcheskoy» Painting certainly know the name of the French symbolist Odilón Redona (Odilon Redon). While many of his contemporaries were looking for new ways to image the reality, Redon drew inspiration for their dreams and fantasies. But this does not mean that the artist is not interested in science: on the contrary, he frequently visited museums of natural history and medical lectures. Science charmed him, because given the opportunity to penetrate the eye invisible worlds. In his paintings and drawings by Redon tried to portray above all ghosts and monsters, living in his own mind. The exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art can be seen by many famous works Redona, in particular «Spider» and «Egg».

Basic Redona followers in the art - the French surrealist. In the first Manifesto of Surrealism, published in 1924, they said: «All wonderful - beautiful!». Of all the amazing monsters generated by surrealism, the most famous, perhaps, are the creations of Max Ernst (Max Ernst). The exhibition presented his «Novel in collages» in 1934 under the title Une Semaine de Bonté ( «Week of Kindness»). The book includes 182 of collage, to create that Ernst has used illustrations from the tabloids novels XIX - early XX century, scientific publications and directories «Shops Mail». The first book of drawings of Ernst Histoire Naturelle ( «Natural History»), published in 1926, also can be seen at the exhibition. Illustrations to the established method of «frottazha»: first, the artist translated onto the paper texture of a rough surface (eg, the paper laid on a piece of wood, and its coal-ter), and then tracing the contours and painted. So «spontaneously» receiving a variety of fantastic landscapes, objects and animals.

The exhibition presents the work and Surrealism, in particular, artist and writer Leonora Carrington (Leonora Carrington), which at one time was a friend of Ernst. Carrington was born in England, lived in France, Spain and Mexico. At the most famous paintings of the artist depict fantastic creatures engaged in magic or alchemy. Her works are on display next to the works of the fourth wife of Ernst, American painter and poet Dorothea Tanning (Dorothea Tanning). Another famous surrealist whose works are represented in the MOMA - German Hans Bellmer (Hans Bellmer), famous for its grotesque installations of mutilated dolls.

a separate discussion deserve the amazing work of contemporary artists. American Ellen Gallagher (Ellen Gallagher) in his 2001 Watery Esctatic ( «Water ecstatic») depicted sea creature living in a mythical underwater country Drexciya. According to legend, the residents of Drexciya - descendants of children of black slaves thrown overboard slave ships. Therefore a terrible way to traffickers transporting slaves from Africa to America, eliminate the pregnant women, described as «an unnecessary load». The children of these women have learned to breathe in the water even in the belly of their mothers and born, began to live in the ocean.

A number of contemporary artists doing their mythology. For example, a young artist from the United States Trenton Doyle Hancock (Trenton Doyle Hancock) created a series of works in which the forces of good (called Mounds) are struggling with the forces of evil (called Vegans). «Maundy» represent the forces of land and represent somewhere between plants and animals. And evil «Vega», those who worship soy curd tofu, seeking to destroy them. Creation Hancock remind both the work of Salvador Dali (Salvador Dali), psychedelic nightmares Robert Williams (Robert Williams) ... and the ironic pop artovskih monsters Takashi Murakami (Takashi Murakami).

graphic works of another American artist, Nicolas Lampert (Nicolas Lampert) inhabit the strange creation of a hybrid animals (mostly insects) and machines. The idea of organic compounds and mechanical forms is one of the most important of the twentieth century. On the theme of «implantation» machines into the human body (or animal) fantasize, many of the Italian Futurists and creator of the Terminator movies. Judging by the works Lampert, «the merits of the future» - hybrids living being heartless and zhelezyaki - look very elegant.

Another miracle of the exhibition - «Art Book» Olafur Eliasson, born in Iceland (Olafur Eliasson). Now the artist is at the peak of popularity. The most famous of his creation - «New York waterfalls», which in June showed all the TV world. Eliasson is the principal representative of the so-called «ekoiskusstva». In his work, he recreates the natural phenomena, using a simple, harmless to the environment facilities. In Eliasson, exhibitions in museums and galleries to visitors the opportunity to see not only the artificial waterfalls, but also, for example, the giant sun. But the Icelandic artist can create amazing works and a much smaller scale, and proves that the exhibition at MOMA. His book «Your Home» consists of 454 sheets, each of which are laser cut «mask» from any room in the house Eliasson. The book repeats the exact house painter ... on a scale of 85:1. It was really, «miracle Technology»!

Close the book Eliasson exhibited work «City Bridge» our countrymen Alexander Brodsky and Ilya Utkin. Brodsky and Utkin - the leaders of the movement «Paper Architecture», received recognition in the 1980's. Architects, members of this movement, rejected a purely functional design, antiestetichnyh «Khrushchev» and «Brezhnev» houses, preferring them to the development of concepts of fantastic structures. Brodsky and Utkin famous for its graphics, which they portrayed their utopian structure.

And of course, was the installation of «Cabinet rarities», created by the Americans Dayonom Mark (Mark Dion). In this «Kunstkammer» represented by objects found in the museum during its renovation in the early 2000's: fragments of old buildings, various things like a box of matches 1940's, and even pieces of works by Bruce Naumann (Bruce Nauman).

specially built for the exhibition «cabinet of rarities», which exhibited various interesting subjects, in particular the famous iron iron spiked with Manx Ray (Man Ray) and «redimeydy» Marcel Duchamp (Marcel Duchamp).

The exhibition will run until November 10.

Julia Maksimova

Sources: artdaily.org , artinvestment.ru