Conceptualist heavyweights Baldessari and Kabakov meet in Moscow

Two of the world’s most important living artists, John Baldessari and Ilya Kabakov, joined in conversation yesterday at an event organised by the Garage Centre for Contemporary Art at the Central House of the Artist in Moscow. Baldessari, 82, and Kabakov, 79, are both hailed as influential figures in the development of conceptual art.

In the conversation, which was hosted by Hans Ulrich Obrist and Garage curator Kate Fowle, the two artists discussed the label conceptualist and the role of education in art. The artists found themselves to be in good-humoured disagreement about most topics: Kabakov insisted on the importance of community in art, whereas Baldessari stressed the individual; Baldessari proposed that art cannot be taught, whereas Kabakov emphasised the vital role of art schools in equipping the artist with technical skills.

John Baldessari (left) and Ilya Kabakov (right). Photograph: Wikimedia Commons / Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow

Both artists are currently exhibiting at Garage: Ilya and Emilia Kabakovs’ Ship of Tolerance is floating on the Pionersky Pond outside the art centre, while Baldessari’s 1+1=1 is on show inside from 21 September until 24 November.