John Chamberlain Building Reopening
The John Chamberlain Building at the Chinati Foundation/La Fundación Chinati will reopen on Saturday, April 30, 2022, after a comprehensive, 12-month-long restoration performed in collaboration with the architects Schaum/Shieh and JC Stoddard Construction. The 23,000-square-foot space houses 24 large-scale John Chamberlain sculptures, making it one of the most important permanent installations of Chamberlain’s works in the world. The restoration project also included the conservation of Barge Marfa (1983), the biggest of Chamberlain’s foam sculptures, carved in situ by the artist.
Chinati will mark the reopening of the John Chamberlain Building with a day-long community celebration on April 30, 2022. Admission to the John Chamberlain Building will be free to visitors on that day and for the remainder of 2022.
SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2022 – FREE TO ALL
OPEN VIEWING
The John Chamberlain Building will be open to the public from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M.
PUBLIC PROGRAMS
TALK 11 A.M. A talk on the artist John Chamberlain and his work in Marfa by Chinati curator Ingrid Schaffner. Location: Crowley Theater 98 South Austin Street
CONVERSATION 3 P.M. A conversation about the restoration of the John Chamberlain Building, moderated by Chinati’s director Jenny Moore with architect Troy Schaum, landscape designer Jim Martinez, and adobe preservationist Joey Benton. Location: John Chamberlain Building
DINNER 5:30 to 7:30 P.M. Dinner on Highland Avenue. Music by the Swifts.
The John Chamberlain Building is located at 106 North Highland Avenue.
Free admission to the John Chamberlain Building for the remainder of 2022 is made possible through the generosity of Lee and Mike Cohn and Anthony and Celeste Meier.
In 1983, the John Chamberlain Building was the first permanent installation opened to the public by Judd in Marfa, Texas. Originally three separate warehouse structures built in 1940 and used for storing wool and mohair, the John Chamberlain Building was transformed architecturally by Judd into a massive, contiguous space flooded with natural light. Judd’s adaptations make it one of his major architectural projects. He designed the quarter-panel, wood-frame windows, and pivot doors; situated grids of sotols, a native plant of the Chihuahuan Desert, to demarcate the east and south borders of the property; and added the adobe-wall courtyard on the northwest corner. Together with Chamberlain, Judd selected and placed the large-scale sculptures installed in the space.
In 2017, Chinati initiated a multi-year master plan to support its needs in the areas of art conservation, architectural restorations, land preservation, and operational improvements. The restoration of the John Chamberlain Building is the first project of the master plan to be completed.