kabakov/

Ilya Kabakov was born in the city of Dnepropetrovsk, USSR in 1933 and lived there until the age of seven. Much of his childhood was spent away from his mother who had to work, and fearing his abusive father. His family lived under harsh, very poor conditions. In 1940 Ilya began school and proved to be an excellent student. This same year the war started. The Kabakov's were Jewish. The Germans invaded Dnepropetrovsk, and the Kabakov family was evacuated to Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Here, living and working conditions are terrible for the many refugees. Ilya however could draw very well, and had great self confidence, so he was accepted to Leningrad's Institute of Art - the best Soviet art academy that had also been evacuated to Samarkand.

Shortly after his acceptance, the school was relocated to Moscow, and his mother got a custodial job with the school so she could be closer to Ilya. While Kabakov endured the difficulties of dormitory life and a rigid soviet education, his mother was barely getting by - just to be close to her son. His mother was constantly making sacrifices for her son, and this became psychologically trying for Kabakov.

In school Ilya made many close friends who were as intellectually simulated as he. The people he met here became his family and part of the Russian intelligentsia. Kabakov was considered by many to be a very intelligent and talented human being, however a mediocre student. He was simply uninspired to paint and unable to relate to classical Russian art which was what he mostly encountered in school. He became critical and suspicious of his art.

Nevertheless, he was again accepted to one of the two most prestigious art institutes in the Soviet Union. To make some money he finds children's books to illustrate.

In his mid to late twenties, Kabakov begins to start working for himself, and developing his identity. He rents a studio with artist friend Ulo Sooster, whose intellectual and aesthetic differences influenced Kabakov's work. Kabakov continued to have close friendships with various other artists. Conversations with these friends further sparked his curiosity, and provided much inspiration.

"I collected an archive, which included materials about all the artists in our circle of friends (MANI). Everything is in portfolios, boxes, and crates. We are our own archivists, historians, and art critics."

In 1968 Kabakov had his first Soviet exhibition with good artist friend Erik Bulatov. This exhibition however was small and risky. Kabakov wanted to exhibit his work but there was little government tolerance for it. With a lack of exhibition space, Kabakov put to use text and books to display his work. He created many albums of subtle commentary. He also held short private exhibitions in his apartments.

"I built the installation "The Man Who Flew into Space" in the corner, I glued Soviet posters from inside of it and I would take it down after each showing for fear that they would drop in, understand, and that would be "the end of everything."

During this time Kabakov went through a period of creating work with great "metaphysical" content. He became very involved in "the mysterious world on the other side of this reality."

In 1978, with the completion of albums of a series "On White and Gray Paper," his metaphysical stage ended. He describes his new voice as a very soviet voice. Kabakov saw the need for Soviet artists in the west, and his interest shifted to everyday experience.

"And there was less and less interest in doing "drawings" and more and more interest in actual everyday things - the pathetic remnants of life: receipts, notes, everyday garbage..."

He creates installations in his studio.

"At first I did drawings, then series of drawings, then "albums," then paintings, then boxes, then crates, then I started to do installations."

Throughout the eighties, Kabakov begins to gain some recognition outside the Soviet Union. He is given a show in Bern, then Marseille, Düsseldorf, and Paris, but cannot the Soviet Union.

"You receive photographs and reviews from each new place of your exhibit, you hold them in your hands like strange, unearthly proof, and the gap between two realities - your life and the life of your work - becomes more and more horrible and psychologically dangerous..."

Finally in 1987, he was able to take a 3 month fellowship in Graz, Austria, in the name of a "creative business trip". His mother dies shortly after and has to return home.

Until his move to New York City in 1992 Kabakov spent time in his own studios and exhibitions in Europe, The United States and Japan. He did installations of every day Soviet life.

"For the first time I had brought the atmosphere of our world to another world, it's the first (successful) experiment with the "total" installation."

In New York Kabakov calls himself at home with his second wife Emilia - a removed cousin who he saw often in Moscow. She had also been living in New York and working as an art dealer. Now they are some what of a team and have been working together on the great number of projects they've had since Ilya came to New York.