Germans And Japanese

I've just been hired to work a couple of weeks with NADA (New Art Dealers Alliance) out of New York City. I'll be working in Miami most of the first part of the month for Art Basel, the huge contemporary art fair. NADA represents artists and galleries from all over the world. I noticed one the places it represents is the Marfa Ballroom in Marfa, Texas.

In 1999 I made a pilgrimage to Marfa. It's 60 miles north of the Mexican border,sitting a mile high above sea level, 200 miles from El Paso (the nearest city), 100 miles from Big Bend National Park, the place where Giant, James Dean's last film was made, the mysterious Marfa lights and a mecca for contemporary art. Late Minimalist Donald Judd bought lots of land in an around Marfa. I think he may have started buying land in the 60's. There is a public sculpture by Claes Oldenberg in town, works by Judd, Dan Flavin, Roni Horn, Ilya Kabakov on permanent display all over town. The Marfa Ballroom is more recent. It's been around for a couple of years. Sonic Youth, Yo La Tengo, Smog and a who's who in hipster rock have played there. Deerhoof is playing the opening for NADA in Miami.

I was Austin which I think is at least an 8 hour drive from Marfa. My plan was to rent a car and drop it off near Marfa, then head to Chihuahua Mexico and ride the Copper Canyon train from there to Los Mochis, then take a ferry to La Paz taking busses back up to the states. I ended up making my planned Mexican trip. I was told the closest place I could drop off a rental car was El Paso. I didn't want to go to El Paso yet. I took the Greyhound. Marfa doesn't have a bus station or at least it didn't. The bus driver asked where I was going as we drove through nearby Alpine. I told him Marfa. "Marfa? You want to go to Marfa? The only people I've ever dropped off there are Germans and Japanese."