Description and conception of "The Palace"
Ilya & Emilia Kabakov
Page 3 of 4
In conclusion, a few words about the book, or better about the album representing a collection of all the projects of the "palace" and their descriptions. It is published in two variations, color and black-and-white, and comprises a special subjective retelling of various ideas and projects belonging to completely different authors, separated from one another both by country and epoch. Such a retelling was required both for standardizing the general style of the summaries, as well as for the convenience of the viewer who is reading the texts in the short time while he sits at the tables in the "palace." The models which are built according to this project also represent a free interpretation (what we have in mind here is the work of the arrangement of the exhibition). Moreover, the hope is expressed that the general idea of each project will turn out to be completely preserved in them. In all cases where the author of the project is known, the last name and other information is indicated accurately on the corresponding pages of the projects. In cases where the name of the author is unknown or doubtful, a footnote indicating such is included.
* In principle, such a "Palace" can therefore be disassembled and assembled in any other place, similar to a traveling circus.
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I. Kabakov
The Palace of Projects
The installation displays and examines a seemingly commonly known and even trivial truth: the world consists of a multitude of projects, realized ones, half-realized ones, and not realized at all. Everything that we see around us, in the world surrounding us, everything that we discover in the past, that which possibly could comprise the future - all of this is a limitless world of projects.
But turning to oneself, thinking about one's own life, we, as a rule are not sure about this, we do not discover in ourselves, so it seems to us, any special project, especially not a major one which captivates us entirely. We think that to have a "project" is most likely the business of some other, special people and therefore they are standardly referred to as "creative," or it is in general some sort of special, extreme state which requires a special resolve and special personality traits.
But we are convinced, and we will try to demonstrate this in our installation, that the only way and means to lead a worthy human life is to have one's own project, to conceive it and bring it to its realization. To have one's own project, to realize it, perhaps, should be inherent in every person, the project is the concentration, the embodiment of the meaning of life, only thanks to it can he establish "who he is," what he is capable of, can he receive "a name." It is only from the moment of the determination of his project that his true "existence" and not just "survival" begins.