From "Murzilka" to $5,84 million per painting: How Ilya Kabakov sold Soviet trash to the world
Born on September 30, 1933 Ilya Kabakov — the leading Soviet and American nonconformist, the founder of Moscow conceptualism, and the most expensive contemporary Russian artist (for example, his painting "Beetle" was sold at auction for $5,84 million).
Having graduated Surikovskiy instituteHe worked for 30 years as an official illustrator of children's books and the magazine "Murzilka", and at the same time created a legendary underground workshop on Sretensky Boulevard.
In 1989, Kabakov emigrated to the United States and worked in collaboration with his wife, Emilia, for the rest of his life. In 2000, ArtNews magazine included him in its list of the world's ten greatest living artists.
On Kabakov's birthday, we explore how he transformed everyday Soviet boredom into a global treasure and the essence of his art.
