the issue. Clearly the publication has no desire to play things safe and, much like Zhukova herself, Garage has positioned itself somewhere in the interstitial territory between notoriety, fashion and art. Of course, these links between high fashion and art are being increasingly explored with the work of fashion designers such as Alexander McQueen presented in museum shows and artistic prints informing the collections of newer design stars such as Mary Katrantzou. In this case, as with much else, Zhukova appears commendably in step with the times. Back in June 2008, Zhukova hosted an event to celebrate the opening of the Garage Center for Contemporary Culture in Moscow. The gala itself lay somewhere in between the glittering but elegant excess of War and Peace and the voluptuous degeneracy of Dmitri Karamazov. The late Amy Winehouse performed for three hundred international guests at a rumored fee of $1 million in the Bakhmetevsky Bus Garage, a cavernous architectural landmark in Moscow roughly the same square footage as the Tate Modern. The only work of art installed in the gallery was a massive light installation, by the artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, resembling a ghostly inverted Christmas tree, which pulsated light throughout the space. In suitably lavish Russian fashion, the revelers drank vodka and champagne and dined on a mix of Piri-piri shrimp and steak. The guest list offered a similar surfeit of delights as celebrities mixed with art-world luminaries; Ronald Lauder and Princess Caroline of Monaco mingled with Jeff Koons and his hugely influential art dealer Larry Gagosian as they celebrated the opening of the new heart of contemporary Russian culture. An event of this nature could perhaps be seen as a product of our particularly consumerist times, a 21st century extravaganza reflecting celebrities and celebrity artists. Yet a similar approach was far from unheard of in the annals of the art parties of Moscow. In fact, that evening in June represented more of a return to the norm for a capital that has repeatedly been the home of the world’s greatest art collections over the
past two centuries. Little more than a hundred years ago, the Morozov Palace on Smolensk Boulevard, home of the art collector and textile tycoon Misha Morozov and his stunning 18-year-old bride Margarita, opened its doors every weekend to lavish brunches for the city’s intelligentsia, artists and glitterati alike. The bonds between wealth, art and fashion are historically powerful and remain undimmed today—especially with Zhukova (and Abramovich) on the scene. “Basically everything she touches becomes a success,” says Nicolas lljine, a prominent expert on Russian contemporary culture, referring to Zhukova’s detailed involvement in the running of Garage and her essential capability of bringing the most interesting and versatile people together. Although her entry onto the slippery stage of the international art scene
project “Commercial Break” as part of the 2011 Venice Biennale and later returned to work on the current issue of Garage magazine. This patronage of newer and mid-career artists is as important now as it was a hundred years ago and can have the same profound impact. s the lease on the current home of the GCCC ran its course and the venue closed its doors this winter, the museum is seeking to expand on an exponential scale. Having spent three years in a beloved Russian architectural landmark designed by the constructivist Melnikov, the GCCC has seemingly garnered the requisite accolades as both a notable venue and assembled an impressive team of curators who deliver world-class exhibitions in order to expand further. Marina Abramovic, Christain Marclay, Carsten Höller, William Kentridge and James Turrell have all had exhibitions in the space, as well as group exhibitions with über-cool titles including How Soon Is Now and Dysfashional. The new venue for the GCCC will be Gorky Park, which has historically been in an area of Moscow known for its cultural importance. Across the street sits the Central House of Artists and various significant cultural institutions, yet in recent years the area could benefit from a new lease of life. The new Garage Center, alongside the impressive efforts made by the new head of Moscow’s Cultural Department, Sergey Kapkov, will provide just that. Further plans for the expansion of Zhukova’s cultural initiative amidst the vast development of New Holland Island in St. Petersburg have raised a storm of conjecture regarding the possibility that the site may become the permanent home of Abramovich’s vast personal collection. The plans for New Holland, a triangular island surrounded by canals linking the Moika and the Neva rivers, would turn the expansive landscape of former naval warehouses into a giant center for art, culture and commerce. Hannah Byers, an expert in Russian art and the Associate Director of Exhibition Management at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, describes the development as an
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Basically everything she touches becomes a success.” —Nicolas Iljine appears to be rather sudden and a range of interests could be seen as masking a lack of focus, the culture of the industry tends to forgive a lack of experience, if it is coupled with a talent for clever delegation, heavy spending and sophistication. Her interest in fashion and style has evolved to take on and succeed in the daunting task of creating a cultural institution, which not only makes a national impact and provides patronage for a local art scene, but one which is noted by the international art world. In a similar fashion to her 19th century predecessors, Zhukova has followed the lead of well-known experts and art-world insiders to help her realize a functioning and organic art museum. And Zhukova's youth, beauty and bank account certainly doesn't hurt. While collecting the works of established classic artists from the 20th century, Zhukova is also forging working partnerships with emerging and midcareer artists. Yolacan, for example, initially contributed a video to the Garage
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