How Judd Gentrified Marfa: Found in Marfa: Boundless Exhibition Space

Judd in Marfa

In 1971, Donald Judd rented a small house in Marfa, Texas in an effort to escape the confines of the New York City art world. Having passed through West Texas while serving in the army from 1946-1947, the Minimalist sculptor admired the sparse desertscape of Marfa and the surrounding Presidio County. Judd would later purchase several Marfa buildings and a nearby 60,000 acre ranch. In 1979, Judd also acquired a large expanse of land, which included the abandoned Army Fort Russel, with the help of the Dia Foundation. The structures at Fort Russel became storehouses for Judd’s large-scale permanent works. Today, Judd’s private residences and studios are cared for by The Judd Foundation, while The Chinati Foundation protects most of Judd’s large instillation pieces in Marfa.

Judd’s art historical background is an important factor in understanding his tenacious aesthetics. After graduating with a Philosophy degree from Columbia University, Judd continued at Columbia, receiving his Master’s in Art History. Judd’s mature body of works completed in the 1970s and 80’s grows from a rejection of classical ideals about sculpture. He believed that sculpture should have a coherent and precise form and that the space surrounding the work should allow the viewer unobstructed examination.

Having fervent ideas about art and its presentation, Judd saw Marfa as an opportunity to fulfill his aesthetic beliefs about the display and preservation of his work, while simultaneously abandoning the New York art scene. Judd’s obtainment of several buildings in Marfa allowed the artist to fix his works in suitable environments specific to the pieces. Judd’s buildings, along with his art, are associated with what art historians call Minimalism, or the reduction of artistic work to foundational qualities. The buildings Judd converted in Marfa are stripped of embellishment, exposing raw structural details. Along with the management of presentation, Marfa allowed Judd an abundance of space to exhibit his work. Marfa provided Judd the opportunity to play both the role of the artist and the curator, exercising complete control of how his work was viewed.