In Moscow, opened retrospective exhibition of Ilya and Emilia Kabakov
ARTinvestment.RU   29 августа 2008

In September in Moscow will open unprecedented in its scale retrospective exhibition «Ilya and Emilia Kabakov. Moscow Retrospective. Alternative History of Art and other projects »

In September in Moscow will open unprecedented in its scale retrospective exhibition «Ilya and Emilia Kabakov. Moscow Retrospective. Alternative History of Art and other projects ».

This is the biggest project in Russia famous artists whose names are included in the top ten world rankings art. Works by Kabakov proud of the leading museum collections, the exhibition held at the most prestigious exhibition venues. Their installation «The man who returned to space» (Paris, Center Georges Pompidou, 1989), «bridge» (New York, Museum of Contemporary Art, 1992), «Life flies» (Cologne, Kunsthalle, 1992), «WC» (Kassel, Documenta IX, 1992) and others have become landmark works of art for the twentieth century. The museum in Wiesbaden in 1999, acquired the installation of «red car», the artist intends to devote a wing in the new part of the exhibition.

indication of recognition of Ilya Kabakov in contemporary art have been numerous international awards: an honorary prize Venice Biennale (1993), given after your installation «Red Pavilion»; prize with Joseph Beuys in Basel, the same fund, the rank of the French beau Ordena Fine Arts and Literature and an honorary doctorate at the University of Bern (2000), etc.

Exhibition Project «Retrospective» coincides with two anniversary dates: September 30, Ilya Kabakov will turn 75 years old, and been 20 years since one of the founders of Moscow Conceptualism left now non-existent country. His current return in the new Russia did not appeal to the past and the beginning of a new history of the master.

Ilya Kabakov first opened to Western audiences unfamiliar world they communal existence of several generations of Soviet people - a meeting place for ideology and way of life, public and private. Created Kabakov genre «total installation» allows each viewer to feel a special character of peace, to experience the drama of loneliness in the inevitability of a team, to experience this world as a body of experience, spotykayas on his broken stairs. As recognized by the artist himself, speaking of the «red car», «I exported, in fact, the cube of Soviet air». His installations can be seen as a philosophical and artistic life-gone Soviet Encyclopedia of Atlantis. Ironical observer and analyst of a thin, Kabakov became for the West not only a guide in unfamiliar world, but also helped to see the two different worlds similarity. He made the obvious connection with the search for the Soviet utopia, and the tragedy of the Russian avant-garde, wrote it in the European tradition of existential absurdity. In fact, Kabakov has given the key to his understanding, with the transfer from the Soviet dialect to the language of contemporary art.

Project «Ilya and Emilia Kabakov. Moscow Retrospective. Alternative History of Art and other projects »Kabakov was prepared specifically for Moscow. The very choice of exhibition site project is a visual metaphor for the history of twentieth century art: the Pushkin Museum to them. Alexander Pushkin - a museum of classical art, founded by Ivan Vladimirovich Tsvetayeva; Center «garage» - a unique building, constructed on the project a great architect Konstantin Melnikov, at last, «Winery» - playground of modern art, the most famous galleries in the former Soviet industrial complex .

At the Pushkin Museum to them. AS Pushkin will be presented a new draft «Gate». Museum - this is the last harbor, where «mooring» artwork after wandering around the world. This quiet marina can serve a symbol of eternity. In the center of the installation, which the author gave a definition of «the last work the artist», the door to the «other space».

The main exhibition of the Moscow project - «Alternative History of Art» - will be held at the new arts venue in Moscow - at the Center of Contemporary Culture «garage», which opens an exhibition by Ilya and Emilia Kabakov.

This magnificent piece will become a Russian avant-garde scene of grand hoaxes, which Kabakov himself ready to play the role of his three fictitious characters: Charles Rosenthal, who lived in the early twentieth century, Kabakova 70, which draws its homonym new work and Igor Spivak originally from Ukraine, whose work has had on the 90-ies. Retrospective of works of three artists of XX century, offers a version of what would have happened if the art is not gone after Kazimir Malevich.

You will build an exact copy of «Red wagon». Without the wheels, but always in the way he - the illusion that a better future is achievable. Inside hear music. Specifically for this installation, composer Vladimir Tarasov arranged melodies of popular Soviet songs. But to enter the car from the main entrance could not be. Avoiding it, the viewer discovers login «by the yard», where possible, in a time machine, get back.

In the future, «garage» plans to provide the main lines of Western and Russian postwar art, but also promises to be a relevant cultural field experiments, space communications and new creative initiatives and educational programs.

At the Center of Contemporary Art «Winery» will be re-established three well-known installation Kabakov. White in the shop - «Life flies», executed in the style of scientific exposition of Soviet provincial museum, with its atmosphere «hopeless boredom, in which even the flies mrut». Nevertheless, do not have to be bored: thoughtful visitor can immerse themselves in the rigorous study of civilization flies, which, according to the author, had a profound impact on mankind: the politics, economics, finance, and, of course, art. Concerto for flies serves to further confirmation.

Here, on «Winery», visitors can see the installation «Toilet», which became a sensation in 1992, Kassel «Documents». For the facade - the usual situation of Soviet apartment. Here we find sortirnye hole adjacent to a sofa, dining table, rugs - Soviet philistine standard well-being in the space of public latrines.

At «Winery» Gallery «M & Z Gelman» will be presented to the installation «The game of tennis». Play will be Ilya Kabakov and Boris Groys. To see what is happening will be on display. Not that the players had reached the level of Boris Becker and Marat Safin, but the main thing - enjoy the process. At the same time, viewers will be able to enjoy the fruits and other «game», the results of which were written in chalk on the black school boards. Dialogues philosopher Boris Groys and artist Ilya Kabakov represented as five rounds of the tennis tournament, where the question - filing, which should be back.

Exhibition project of Ilya and Emilia Kabakov in Moscow - the event is not only cultural, but also a great social importance. Philosophic thinking about seventy-art era of social experiment, only a moderate to deep Russian artists, at the same time give an opportunity to see the path traversed in the last years of the new Russia.

17-18 September at the Center of Contemporary Culture «garage» held a symposium «Post-war Russian Art: Aesthetics and Politics», timed to the opening in Moscow Kabakov retrospective exhibition. The symposium will be attended by prominent curators, critics, art historians, scholars of contemporary art. A discussion with Robert Storr, Boris Groys, Matthew Jesse Jackson, Jonathan Fainberg, Harry Tinterou, Catherine Degot, Margarita Tupitsyn, Sergey Gordeev, Lance Fung, Ibrahim Melamed, Amey Wall.

Exhibition Project «Ilya and Emilia Kabakov. Moscow Retrospective. Alternative History of Art and other projects »is the first draft of the program« The Classics of Modern Art », carried out the Moscow biennale of contemporary art.

Organizers express special thanks to Roman Abramovich for the financial support of the project.

The dates of the exhibitions:

16.09 - 19.10. «Gate». Pushkin Museum to them. Alexander Pushkin Str. Volkhonka, 14 (Gallery of Art in Europe and America, XIX - XX centuries). Ticket price - 60 EUR.

17.09 - 19.10. «Alternative History of Art», «Red wagon».

Center for Contemporary Culture «garage», str. Obraztsova, 19. Admission free.

18.09 - 15.10. «Life flies», «Toilet», «The game of tennis».

Center for Contemporary Art «Winery», 4 th Syromyatnichesky trans., 1, p. 6. Log in charge.

Source: kabakov.moscowbiennale .ru /ru /