Glass House's Donald Judd Getting Conserved, Artist's Son Answers Your Questions
Art nerds of the world, rejoice! Flavin Judd, the son of famed minimalist sculptor Donald Judd, is answering questions about his father's work and its conservation.
Art nerds of the world, rejoice! Flavin Judd, the son of famed minimalist sculptor Donald Judd and a founding board member of the Judd Foundation, is answering questions online this week about his father’s work and its conservation. The online event coincides with preservation of Judd’s “Untitled” (1971) outdoor art work, which began this week.
There have already been some interesting points about the artist’s thoughts on outdoor art work:
Don [Judd] was aware of weathering of course and actually liked it. This is contrast to damage or marks made by negligent people which he hated. In all outdoor Judd works there has to be a consideration of natural weathering while also keeping in mind that the works have to look like what he wanted.
I had a discussion with one museum that wanted to essentially paint or glaze over their Judd piece because they claimed the surface was too damaged by weather. I had to explain that a layer of paint would do more to damage the surface of the piece than anything nature could do short of an earthquake.
It’s a balance: keep the works in good shape but don’t alter them in an attempt to keep them looking new.
And in response to Brian Dupont’s question about the difference between indoor or outdoor Judd works, he get this response:
In both works for exterior and interior there is acceptance of change (copper turns brown from shiny orange, concrete changes color) but not an insistence on it. It’s up to the owner of the specific work whether they want to keep a copper piece polished and shiny or let it turn brown. Don was fine with either choice.
And in terms of Donald Judd’s philosophy, well, turns out he was anti-Platonic and anti-Cartesian:
Don [Judd] thought Descartes’ division between thought and feeling was false and he tried to make work that one had to deal with within space: bringing together thought, feeling, experience and the physical.
Join the conversation and ask a question at the Glass House website.
