The Prada in Marfa

A donkey waits in anticipation of the new Prada in Marfa.

In October 2005, Michael Elmgreen and Ingar Dragset, two artists working out of Berlin, completed a project 40 miles outside of Marfa on Highway 90. The permanent installation includes a large rectilinear building made from an earth-friendly stucco material and features two substantial windows below black signs reading “Prada Marfa.” The small-scale boutique houses a collection of shoes and bags from Prada’s 2005 Fall collection. But unlike an actual store, the piece is not designed to sell the contents within. Instead, Elmgreen and Dragset have envisioned the site to eventually erode into the desert landscape.

Prada Marfa functions as a tie between historical events that have occurred within the town and commentary on the gentrification of Marfa. Elmgreen and Dragset’s vision for Prada Marfa to eventually fall into ruins mimics other famous structures within the town. Most recognized is the Riata set-piece from the 1950’s movie Giant, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson. During production, a large set was brought in from California and built in the middle of the desert. The piece was never dismantled and as a result, decayed naturally. Prada Marfa reflects a similar aesthetic to the Riata and starts a discussion with Marfa’s historical past.

The Riata in its ruined state

Along with reflecting the local history, the piece comments on the ongoing gentrification of Marfa. In a 2005 Art Forum, Craig Rember, the Judd Foundation registrar, commented on the evolving state of Marfa. He declares Marfa’s, “Burgeoning reputation as an austerely chic, exclusive little contemporary art mecca … where you can drop $50,000 on some art, and spend $300 on supper but where it’s difficult to get a haircut or batteries.” Rember goes on to describe the town’s exploding real estate market stating, “It’s also something of a surprise to discover a real estate feeding frenzy, where modest land parcels are being snapped up—sight unseen—for immodest money.” The location of Prada Marfa, which is much closer to the neighboring town of Valentine, shows the growth and interest in the town and a developing population of art conscious individuals and tourists with money.

Prada Marfa

Sources

Photo Credit 1: Marshall Astor
Photo Credit 2: Marshall Astor
Photo Credit 3: Marshall Astor

In the Style of Judd

Judd’s influence is evident in several of the newly emerging establishments in Marfa. As a result of institutions like the Chinati and Judd Foundations, the town has encountered a boom in tourism, a direct result of the presence of Judd’s permanent collection.

It is clear that Marfa’s collection is compelling to visitors because of the town’s secluded location. Marfa is located two hours from El Paso, the site of the closest airport, suggesting that visitors come with the intent to stay. Marfa’s undersized population includes a significant amount of permanent residents who visited to view Judd’s work and stayed because of Marfa’s other absorbing qualities. Many of these transplants pioneer Marfa’s trendiest eateries and accommodations. Each of the highlighted locations encompass the cosmopolitan standards desired by Marfa’s artistically aware clientele combined with a distinctly Juddian aesthetic. Judd’s work provides inspiration and rationale for the gentrification of Marfa.

Maiya’s

Located on Marfa’s main street, Maiya’s restaurant combines new-Italian fare with a distinctly Judd-inspired atmosphere. The restaurant serves a variety of intriguing combinations like Pecos melons and Prosciutto di Parma and includes a sizeable wine list. The interior space resembles Judd’s aesthetics, exhibiting concrete floors and white walls. Maiya’s successfully combines the cravings of the cultured tourist with an unexpected interpretation of Donald Judd’s work.

Maiya's Restaurant
103 North Highland Street
Marfa, Texas 79843
432.729.4410 (T)
432.729.4439 (F)
info@maiyasrestaurant.com

The interior of Maiya's Restaurant.

Food Shark

Adjacent to the railroad tracks that run through town, the Food Shark serves “Mediterranean-by-way-of-West-Texas” eats during lunchtime. Food Shark specializes in several Mediterranean treats including artfully presented hummus, pita, and falafel. The food is made inside a metal-clad truck that arrives a half-hour before it opens for business. The intermingling of Mediterranean with Marfa creates the cultured flair appreciated by tourists. Lunch is served in a shaded pavilion dotted with five large tables designed by Donald Judd and donated by the Chinati Foundation.

Contact: foodshark@foodsharkmarfa.com

The eating pavilion for Food Shark Marfa.

A Mediterranean delight from the Food Shark.

The Thunderbird Hotel

Converted from a tired roadside motel, the restored Thunderbird embraces the bare-bones quality of Judd’s interior spaces in Marfa. The hotel offers unique accommodations including typewriter and bicycle rentals and includes stark minimalist furnishing. The hotel also makes an effort to incorporate the work of other artists featured at the Chinati Foundation into the guestroom décor. The Thunderbird marries an original Marfa structure, a Minimalist aesthetic, and the desires of a fine-arts traveler proving Judd’s long-lasting ability to gentrify Marfa.

Thunderbird Hotel
601 West San Antonio
Marfa, TX 79843
Telephone: 432.729.1984
Facsimile: 432.729.1989
reservations@thunderbirdmarfa.com

A guest room at the Thunderbird Hotel.

The exterior at the Thunderbird Hotel.

Sources

Photo Credit 1: Maiya's Restaurant
Photo Credit 2: Food Shark Marfa
Photo Credit 3: Food Shark Marfa
Photo Credit 4: Thunderbird Hotel
Photo Credit 5: Thunderbird Hotel

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.

Donald Judd, 100 Untitled works in mill aluminum, 1982-1986, Collection of The Chinati Foundation, Marfa, Texas

Donald Judd, Untitled (DSS 130), 1968, amber Plexiglas and stainless, Collection of The Chinati Foundation, Marfa, Texas,

Sources

Photo Credit 1: Judd Foundation
Photo Credit 2: Chinati Foundation
Photo Credit 3: Chinati Foundation