The 2nd Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art opened late last week, and today I braved the snow to visit the main venue, the Federation Tower, soon-to-be the tallest building in Europe, scheduled for completion next year. Not sure if this was a sly marketing ploy or a masterful curatorial stroke, but three floors (19th, 20th, 21st) were sacrificed to the arts for one month. I find contemporary art insufferable, especially in vast quantities, but the grand location here made sure there was always something delightful to look at. Particularly distracting, in the best possible way, were the squiggles on the windows by a Romanian artist Dan Perjovschi. I wonder if any art show has ever been upstaged (or at least neutralized) in this way before. The sprawling interiors took on the semblance of a raw exhibition space, although they are well on their way to being turned into multimillion dollar penthouses and offices.(There will even be a swimming pool on one of the top floors.) I hesitated to support the mammoth construction of skyscrapers in Moscow, but I always thought they will make at least one positive contribution, giving new vantage points for viewing this city. They have indeed done that. At least for now.
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