halloween night i went to the 92nd st Y to see ilya and emilia kabakov speak. i thought it would be interesting, as they are very important in terms of art history... and, as you well know by now, i am obsessed with russia.
while there were bits and pieces of interest, as a whole, i would just say... no. while the kabakovs were sweet in demeanor, lecture does not seem to be their strong suit. ilya spoke solely in russian, quick and quiet, while emilia translated at the same time, equally quick and quiet. the result was a whir of sound, with one or two words revealing themselves at random intervals. additionally, the host, (sir) norman rosenthal, though having a rather impressive resume, was... arrogant. this is the first i have heard him speak, so perhaps i caught him on an off night... but... it was... unattractive. and the crowd was a bit snooty as well...
several people left before the end of the presentation... myself among them... (i stayed for as long as i could, but the girl next to me got up to leave, so i just rode her coattails.)
but i am glad i went... and since i left early, i still had time to trick-or-treat.
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