Relinking: Kabakov Cabinet

The exhibition: Relinking: Kabakov Cabinet gives unique insight into the oeuvre of artist couple Ilya and Emilia Kabakov. In 2021, the Van Abbemuseum bought 86 of their graphic works. A selection of 40 graphic works will now be put on display for the first time - together with other works by the couple of which some are already in the museum’s collection. This cross section of artworks from different periods and disciplines - ranging from big paintings that invite visitors to step back and view them from a distance to small prints and book illustrations that have to be viewed close up - will engage in dialogue with each other.

Ilya and Emilia Kabakov

The recently deceased Ilya Kabakov (1933-2023) was one of the most important and influential Moscow conceptualists. Much of his older work is a melancholy but humoristic comment on the failure of Soviet ideals. He has been working with his wife Emilia (1945) since 1988 and both regard their work as a joint artistic expression. Born in Dnipro in Ukraine, previously Dnepropetrovsk in the Soviet Union, they moved to Long Island (US) and from here created exhibitions throughout the world.

A special collection

“It’s unusual for such a big collection of works to be bought from the Kabakovs at the same time. Their prints are much in demand and often produced in very limited quantities,” says Willem Jan Renders, the exhibition’s curator. “The new works are a great addition to the ones the museum acquired in the past.” Renders retired after working at the Van Abbemuseum for 25 years but has returned for this exhibition. He has had a good relationship with the Kabakovs for a long time.

Lissitzky - Kabakov

“In 2012, we organised the Lissitzky - Kabakov: Utopie en Werkelijkheid (‘Utopia and Reality’) exhibition with the Kabakovs a guest curators. It showcased their work and the work of El Lissitzky (1890 - 1941),” Renders says. It was the first time that the oeuvres of these renowned 20th-century Russian artists had been presented together. The exhibition then moved to the Hermitage in Saint Petersburg, the Multimedia Art Museum in Moscow and the Kunsthaus in Graz. Our collaboration culminated in the Relinking: Kabakov Cabinet exhibition.

For beginners, art experts and children

“For visitors who are not familiar with the work of the Kabakovs yet, the cross section of works in the exhibition will give them a great introduction to their body of work. More experienced art experts will be able to immerse themselves in the various works and discover more about the interaction between them,” Renders says. The exhibition will be a fun way for children to discover art as well: Ilya Kabakov has illustrated many children's books. “We will be displaying illustrations that he created for children alongside his autonomous work. Although the style he uses in these drawings is sometimes similar, there is one difference: the works he created for children’s books were censored; as an artist, he had the freedom to decide on the specifics of his stories and illustrations himself.”

Relinking

The present, compact solo exhibition by Ilya and Emilia Kabakov is part of the Relinking series in which new collection purchases are displayed for the first time. The Kabakovs’ work dovetails with the museum’s collection policy, in which reflection on decolonisation and demodernisation are important reference points. The war in Ukraine and the Russian imperialist urge make the presentation even more current.

Publication

To mark the purchase of the new artworks, Emilia Kabakov, Mike Karstens and Willem Jan Renders will publish a catalogue raisonné in English of the Kabakovs’ graphic work (1981-2019).

Partners

This exhibition is a joint collaboration with Ilya and Emilia Kabakov. The works of art were purchased with the support of Stichting Promotors.

Ilya Kabakov (1933-2023)

On Saturday, May 27th, artist Ilya Kabakov passed away at the age of 89, surrounded by his family. We wish his friends and family a lot of strength. Shortly before his death he worked on the exhibition Relinking: Kabakov Cabinet together with his wife Emilia Kabakov and guest curator Willem Jan Renders.

As many of the works in this exhibition contain Russian texts, we have translated them into Dutch and English. Click here to read the texts.