Jeff Koons, Baroque Egg with Bow
Modern art stars hit the Chocolate Factory
Published 19 September, 2008, 13:03
Art lovers in Moscow are enjoying a rare chance to see some of the world’s greatest contemporary works. Gegosian gallery has brought the jewels of its modern collection to the Russian capital and it’s on show for the next month.
The exhibition, called “For what you are about to receive”, opened on Wednesday at the Krasnii Oktyabr central Moscow and continues through to October 25.
Larry Gegosian is a famous and successful art dealer who owns exhibition halls in New York and London as well as an art centre in Los Angeles. His gallery discovered British artist Damien Hirst, whose work “The Golden Calf” shook the art world in the 1990s. It’s a cow preserved in formaldehyde, crowned with a pair of gold horns. It sold for a record 10,345,250 pounds at Sotheby's in London this week.
Explaining the purpose of the exhibition, London gallery director Victoria Gelfand said that the event is aimed at introducing big names in modern art to a Russian audience.
In her view, the Russian capital lacks quality contemporary art exhibitions and the show is aiming to address this gap in the market.
The artists presented at the show will be well known to Russia’s art-savvy public as well to Russian collectors. Education aside, this alone should ensure the exhibition is a commercial success.
Among the show’s highlights are works by De Cooning, one of America’s greatest abstract expressionists. Conceptualist Jeff Koons is also represented. Takeshi Kitano, whose works are also on display, made Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People list.
The exhibition strives to present a history of contemporary art from its beginnings in expressionism at the beginning of the 20th century to the latest underground forms.
The Russian audience who attended the opening particularly loved Jeff Coons' giant sculpture of an baroque-style egg. The piece is one of a series of works called “Presents”.
In cooperation with the Russian State Centre of Modern Art, the organisers scheduled a number of lectures on modern art history for October.
Leonid Bazhenov, the director of the Centre, said he hoped his institution might one day acquire some prime modern art pieces. He added that the Centre would gladly purchase 80 per cent of the exhibition.
The venue of the show is of interest in itself. It is a historic building, erected by a German businessman who came to Russia and opened a very successful chocolate factory. Under the Soviets, it became “Krasnii Oktyabr” (Red October), which continued to make chocolate at the site.
Moscow’s planning authorities plan to turn the historic building into loft apartments in the future.
In the meantime, the exhibition’s organisers are glad to make use of it. The combination of 19th century architecture and an authentic soviet industrial space create the perfect backdrop to display contemporary art works.
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