Agnes Martin 1974: An Interview

An historical interview with the reclusive minimalist painter originally recorded in 1974 in Cuba, New Mexico and re-edited in 2003. 

Originally from Canada, Agnes Martin (d. 2004) moved to the U.S. in 1931. Martin lived in Taos, New Mexico from 1954 to 1957 and then returned to New York, where she established her name as an important minimalist painter. Her work differed conceptually from the minimalists in that it was anti-intellectual and intensely spiritual, and her grids represented meditative reflections on Taoism. For years, Martin worked only in black, white, and (occasionally) brown.

She left New York and traveled around the United States for three years before returning to New Mexico. The palette of her canvases broadened after her return to the Southwest.  Her devotees consider her a visionary—an artist possessed of perceptive powers that have transformed her style into a heightened visual experience.

Interview by Kate Horsfield.