marfa, tx
The day after Christmas, my aunt, uncle, cousin, grandma and I headed to Marfa, Tx. How does one get to Marfa you might ask…well since we were already in Houston for Christmas, you can drive nine hours or fly to El Paso and drive three hours. Easy to get to it is not, but Marfa was filled with surprises for all of us-surprisingly cold, surprisingly flat(as my grandmother remarked many times), surprisingly empty, but most of all surprisingly great food and art.
Donald Judd, the architect, artist and most famously the mastermind behind minimalism died in 1994 and asked in his will that none of his belongings be touched or moved upon his death. Therefore, the Judd foundation has kept his home, studio, and Chinati foundation in the same shape that Don left it in upon leaving. With an OCD like nature, his home and studio space were kept in immaculate shape, with no clutter or knick knacks. Among the many installations you can find in Marfa, there were works by Carl Andre, Bridget Riley, Dan Flavin to name a few.
Our recommendations for food and shopping:
Hotel Saint George- a great midcentury modern hotel with a nice bar, restaurant and home to the Marfa Book Company
Stellina-doesn’t take reservations but our favorite meal of the trip, despite waiting in the cold for an hour and a half
Do Your Thing or Big Bend Coffee Roasters for a coffee (keep in mind nothing in Marfa is done at the quickest pace, but if you have a patient approach everything does get done eventually)
Raba, Communitie, Freda for fun browsing and Marfa finds
