LOOKING FOR EMPTY LAND: DONALD JUDD AND ICELAND

An extensive record of an underappreciated source of Judd's artistic inspiration: Iceland's vernacular architecture

Donald Judd (1928-94) was an American artist known for reductive forms and a strident rejection of imposed meanings. Though largely absent from art historical accounts of his life, Judd had a varied and complex relationship to Iceland which started with his childhood fascination with the Icelandic sagas. After a first trip to the island in 1981, he then returned to create an exhibition in Reykjavik and through his visits became familiar with a number of Icelandic artists. Judd became interested in Iceland's vernacular architecture and his connection to the setting touched upon many areas of his creative thought: writing, architecture, landscape, art and politics.
Developed through interviews with his friends, former assistants and family, as well as original archive research in Iceland and Marfa, Looking for Empty Land presents, for the first time, comprehensive research into Judd's involvement with the country. The publication explores Judd's appreciation of the interconnections seen in Iceland between literature, landscape and architecture, providing a lens through which to reappraise his activities in Marfa, Texas, which similarly brought together concerns of building and place.
Gavin Morrison is a Scottish curator and writer currently living in Texas. He was the director of Skaftfell: East Iceland Center for Visual Art in Seyðisfjörður, Iceland, from 2018 to 2020. In 2025 Morrison curated the exhibition Jóhann Eyfells: Cairns>/i> at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas.