Donald Clarence Judd (1928–1994)
La Mansana de Chinati (The Block), 400 West El Paso Street, Marfa, TX 79843
Judd Foundation, 104 South Highland Avenue, Marfa, TX 79843
432-729-4406
![37A_HAHS_ch37A_JuddMarfa_001Placeholder[1B]](https://i0.wp.com/artistshomes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/37A_HAHS_ch37A_JuddMarfa_001Placeholder1B-e1723085745280.jpg?fit=687%2C1024&ssl=1)
![13_HAHS_ch12_Judd_001Placeholder[1B]](https://i0.wp.com/artistshomes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/13_HAHS_ch12_Judd_001Placeholder1B.png?fit=1000%2C694&ssl=1)
ABOUT
Judd Foundation provides access to Donald Judd’s residence, libraries, and working spaces in Marfa, Texas. Collectively known as La Mansana de Chinati, or the Block, the buildings which comprise the site house of some of his first large-scale architectural projects within repurposes historic buildings. These spaces contain furniture by Judd, his early works from the 1960s and 1970s, and extensive library housing 13,000 volumes. These works are installed within a complex of buildings and surrounding gardens developed by Judd.
Visits are led by artist guides and the visits allow for direct engagement with Judd’s installed spaces throughout the historically preserved living and working spaces.
SPECIAL RESOURCES
“The space surrounding my work is crucial to it: as much thought has gone into the installation as into a piece itself.”
— Donald Judd, 1977
Donald Clarence Judd (1928–1994)
Donald Judd revolutionized practices and attitudes surrounding art-making and the exhibition of art, advocating for the permanent installation of works by artists in carefully considered environments. Judd achieved this goal first at his studio/residence at 101 Spring Street in New York, and later in various locations in and around Marfa, Texas.
Judd filled 101 Spring Street with nearly 2,000 objects (200 pieces of art and furniture, 1,800 household objects), from rare prototypes and seminal works to prosaic furnishings he used everyday. His collection spans centuries of art and design, and reflects his personal interest in art and well-made things: paintings, sculpture and works on paper; furniture, including pieces by Alvar Aalto, Gerrit Rietveld, and the Thonet firm; and ceremonial and decorative objects and textiles from Europe, Asia, Africa and North and South America. Judd included his own artwork as well as furniture he designed.
After 1972 Judd spent some of his time in Marfa, Texas, but he continued to use 101 Spring Street as a live/work studio until his death in 1994.
LEARN MORE
Donald Judd visited Marfa for the first time in 1971, while looking for a place to live in the southwestern United States. Several factors made Marfa an attractive place for relocation: the landscape, the weather, and its relative remoteness. Judd initially rented a small house in town, and then another at the outskirts for himself and his family; shortly thereafter, in 1973 and 1974, he bought the buildings that comprised his primary residence, La Mansana de Chinati, also known as the Block. Whereas at 101 Spring Street Judd appointed individual floors for specific purposes, in Marfa he designated individual buildings for distinct areas of his practice, including installations of three-dimensional works, and eventually reliefs, early paintings, and prints, and studios for art and architecture. Through Judd’s efforts, his spaces in Marfa became, and remain today, the primary place to see his work. As he wrote, “Too often, I believe, the meaning of a work of art is lost as a result of thoughtless or unsuitable placement of the work for display. The installation of my work, for example, as well as that of others, is contemporary with its creation, and the space surrounding the work is crucial to it.”
IN COLLABORATION WITH THE NATIONAL TRUST
Preservation Magazine
From Winslow Homer to Georgia O’Keeffe: Inside Historic Artists’ Homes and Studios