Gordon Matta-Clark

An essential reference that provides new understanding of the thought processes of one of the most radical artists of the late twentieth century.

Gordon Matta-Clark (1943–1978) has never been an easy artist to categorize or to explain. Although trained as an architect, he has been described as a sculptor, a photographer, an organizer of performances, and a writer of manifestos, but he is best known for un-building abandoned structures. In the brief span of his career, from 1968 to his early death in 1978, he created an oeuvre that has made him an enduring cult figure.
 
In 2002, when Gordon Matta-Clark’s widow, Jane Crawford, put his archive on deposit at the Canadian Centre for Architecture in Montreal, it revealed a new voice in the ongoing discussion of artist/architect Matta-Clark’s work: his own. Gwendolyn Owens and Philip Ursprung’s careful selection and ordering of letters, interviews, statements, and the now-famous art cards from the CCA as well as other sources deepens our understanding of one of the most original thinkers of his generation. Gordon Matta-Clark: An Archival Sourcebook creates a multidimensional portrait that provides an opportunity for readers to explore and enjoy the complexity and contradiction that was Gordon Matta-Clark.

CONTENTS

The Artist’s Voice: Writings by Gordon Matta-Clark
Transformations: A Brief Biography of Gordon Matta-Clark
A Note to the Reader

1969–1970 
Transcription of Audiotaped Interview with Art Critic Cindy Nemser, July 1970
Transcription of Audiotaped Interview with Art Critic Cindy Nemser, “Seeing Who
You Really Are,” September 1970

1971 
Letter to Roberto Matta in Paris from New York, April 1, 1971
Letter to Reverend Moody in New York from New York, April 25, 1971
Letter to Curator Mary Delahoyd at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York, from
New York, ca. April 1971
Vassar Exhibition Text, 1971
Letter to Harold Stern at the Department of Real Estate, New York City, from
New York, July 10, 1971
Letter to Rockland Colloid Corporation in Piedmont, New York, from New York, [n.d.—1971]
A Matta’s Proposal, New York, August 1, 1971
Letter to Alfred Pacquement at the Biennale de Paris, from New York, September 22, 1971
Cherry Tree, Draft, [n.d.—1971]
Cherry Tree—Published Version
Draft of a Text for the Contrabienal Catalogue from Gordon Matta-Clark’s Notebook
Edges, [n.d.—1971]
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in New York from South America, December 19, 1971

1972
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in New York from South America, January 14, 1972
Selections from the Food Film Notebook, Spring 1972
Plans to Break, [n.d.—1972]

1973 
Letter to Roberto Matta in Paris from New York (April 1973)
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in Paris from New York, October 6, 1973
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in New York from Amsterdam, December 2, 1973
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in New York from Amsterdam, December 3, 1973
Letter to Artist Richard Nonas in New York from Amsterdam, December 5, 1973
Anarchitecture Letter Part 1 to Carol Goodden in New York from Amsterdam,
December 10, 1973
Anarchitecture Letter Part 2 to Carol Goodden in New York from Amsterdam,
December 10, 1973
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in New York from Amsterdam, [n.d.—December 1973]

1974
Interview with Liza Bear, May 21 and 25, 1974
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in New York from Niagara Falls, New York, August 1974
Untitled Statement on Bingo, [n.d.—1974]
Second Untitled Statement on Bingo, [n.d.—1974]
Letter to Margot Wellington, Downtown Brooklyn Development Association, from
New York, [n.d.—1974]

1975
Letter to Roberto Matta in Paris from New York, January 10, 1975
Letter to Gallerist Salvatore Ala in Milan from New York, [January 1975]
Letter to Artist Douglass Chrismas in Los Angeles from New York, January 16, 1975
Letter to James Harithas at the Contemporary Arts Museum in Houston, Texas, from New
York, January 16, 1975
Letter to Warren Wechsler at the Economic Development Agency in New York
from New York, January 16, 1975
Letter to Robert Lendenfrost at the Art and Design Program, World Trade Center,
New York, from New York, January 16, 1975
Letter to Lauren Ewing at the Williams College Museum, Williamstown, Massachusetts,
from New York, January 17, 1975
Letter to Gallerist Germano Celant in Milan from New York, January 17, 1975
Letter to Pontus Hulten, Director of the Future at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris,
from New York
Letter to Rockwell International in Pittsburgh, PennsylvaniaPennsylvania, from New York,
January 17, 1975
Letter to New York State Council on the Arts from New York, January 17, 1975
Letter to Artists Robert Rauschenberg and Rob Peterson in Florida from New York,
January 20, 1975
Letter to James Harithas at the Contemporary Arts Museum in Houston, Texas, from
New York, January 21, 1975
Letter to Sidney Lewis at Best Products, in Ashland, Virginia, from New York, January 21,
1975
Letter to Robert Lendenfrost in the Art and Design Program, World Trade Center, New York,
from New York, January 21, 1975
Letter to Bob Murdock at the Dallas Museum of Art in Dallas, Texas, from New York, January
21, 1975
Letter to Doris Friedman at City Walls, Inc., in New York from New York, January 25, 1975
Letter to Harris Rosenstein at Rice University in Houston, Texas, from New York, January 25,
1975
Letter to Gallerist Claire Copley in Los Angeles from New York, January 26, 1975
Letter to Gallerist Dave Creigh in Coronado, California, from New York, [n.d.—January 1975?]
Letter to Art Consultant Ruth Hollander in New York from New York, January 26, 1975
64391int.
Letter to Gallerist Wolfgang Becker in Aachen, West Germany, from New York,
January 27, 1975
Letter to Frederica Hunter at Texas Gallery in Houston, Texas, from New York,
January 27, 1975
Letter to Freddie Loizeaux at Controlled Demolition in Towson, Maryland, from New York,
January 27, 1975
Letter to Developer Melvyn Kauffman in New York from New York, January 31, 1975
Letter to Urban Planner Ron Shiffman at Pratt Center in Brooklyn, New York, from
New York, February 4, 1975
Letter to Artist Jim Roche in Tallahassee, Florida, from New York, February 10, 1975
Letter to Landscape Architect Russell Dupuis in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, from New York,
February 10, 1975
Letter to Ira Licht at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, from New York, February
10, 1975
Letter to Anita O’Neil at Creative Time in New York from New York, February 10, 1975
Letter to the Advertising Department at Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp. from New York,
February 23, 1975
Interview with Art Critic and Architect Donald Wall), [n.d.—1975]
Letter to Steve Rother, Revenue Collection, Newark, New Jersey, from New York,
March 2, 1975
Letter to Art Critic and Architect Don Wall from Central America, April 2, [1975]
Work with Abandoned Structures, [n.d.—1975]
Letter to Frederica Hunter and Ian at Texas Gallery from New York, April 30, [1975]
Letter to Jim Harithas at the Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, from New York,
April 30, 1975
Letter to Helga Retzer at Amerika Haus in Berlin from New York, May 5, 1975
Letter to Walter Hopps at the National Collection of Fine Arts in Washington, DC, from
New York, May 5, 1975
Letter to Georges Boudaille at the Biennale de Paris from New York, [n.d.—1975]
Letter to Marilyn Lubetkin at the Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, from
New York, May 15, 1975
Letter to Curator Nina Felshin in Washington, DC, from New York, [June 1975]
Letter to Wolfgang Becker at the Neue Galerie in Aachen, West Germany, from
New York, [n.d.—1975]
Letter to Gallerist Claire S. Copley in Los Angeles from New York, June 20, 1975
Letter to Paolo Minetti and Clotilde at Galeriaforma in Genoa from New York,
June 26, 1975
Letter to Gallerist Salvatore Ala in Milan from New York, June 26, 1975
Letter to Curator Nina Felshin in Washington, DC, from New York, June 30, [1975]
Letter to Architect Will Alsop in London, England, from New York, July 2, 1975
Letter to Artist Dale Chihuly at the Rhode Island School of Design from New York,
[n.d.—1975]
Letter to Representative John M. Murphy in Staten Island from New York, July 2, 1975
Letter to Helga Retzer at Amerika Hause, Berlin, West Germany, from New York,
[n.d.—after May 5, 1975]
Letter to Georges Boudaille at the Biennale de Paris from New York, July 30, 1975
Letter to Paolo Minetti at Galeriaforma in Milan from New York, July 31, 1975
Letter to Frederica Hunter and Ian at Texas Gallery from New York, August 12, 1975
Letter to Malitte Matta in Paris from New York, August 13, 1975
Letter to Gallerist Jorard Piltzer in Paris from New York, August 18, 1975
Letter to Curator Jean-Hubert Martin in Paris from New York, August 18, 1975
Letter to Gallerist Salvatore Ala in Milan from New York, August 19, 1975
Letter to Helga Retzer at America Haus in Berlin from Paris, September 7, 1975
Letter to Paolo Minetti at Galeriaforma in Milan from Paris, September 7, 1975
Letter to Wolfgang Becker at Neue Gallery in Aachen, West Germany, from Paris,
September 8, 1975
Letter to Anne Alpert and Batan in New York from Paris, September 27, 1975
[postmarked October 19]
Letter to Artist Susan Ensley in New York from Paris, October 9, 1975
Letter to Anne Alpert and Batan in New York from Paris, October 18, 1975
Letter to Malitte Matta in Paris from Milan, Italy, October 31, 1975
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in New York from Milan, November 10, 1975
Letter to Don Foresta at the American Cultural Center, Paris, from Milan,
[n.d.—November 1975]
Letter to Paolo Minetti at Galeriaforma in Milan [n.d.—Fall 1975]
Letter to Helga Retzer at Amerika Haus in Berlin, West Germany, from Milan,
[November 1975]
Letter to Mabou Mines Founders Lee and Ruth Breuer in New York from Paris,
December 1, 1975
Letter to Artist Jerry Clapsaddle at SUNY, Oneonta, New York, from Milan,
December 1, 1975
Letter to Gallerist Franco Toselli in Milan from Milan, December 2, 1975
Letter to Attorney Jerry Ordover in New York from Rome, December 4, 1975
In Defense of Pier 52, 1975
Gordon Matta-Clark, a Film by Marc Petitjean
Biography, 1975
Etant d’art locataire, Beaubourg, 1975
Works by Gordon Matta-Clark at Gallery Ala, [n.d.—1975]
Proposal to the Workers of Sesto San Giovanni, Milan, 1975

1976
Letter to Paula Hutchings at UCLA from New York, January 23, 1976
Letter to Monette Repriels at Galerie Vega in Liege, Belgium, from New York,
February 2, 1976
Letter to Architect Franco Raggi in Milan from New York, February 2, 1976
Letter to Gallerist Salvatore Ala in Milan from New York, February 2, 1976
Letter to Wolfgang Becker at Neue Galerie in Aachen, West Germany, from New York,
February 2, 1976
Letter to Georges Boudaille at the Biennale de Paris from New York, February 2, 1976
Letter to K. J. Geirlandt at the Palais des Beaux Arts in Brussels, Belgium, from
New York, February 2, 1976
Letter to Yvon Lambert at Galerie Yvon Lambert from New York, February 2, 1976
Letter to Don Foresta at the Centre Culturel Américain in Paris from New York,
March 3, 1976
Letter to UCLA Professor Bill Mitchell in Venice, California, from New York, [n.d—1976]
Letter to Architect Franco Raggi in Milan from New York, April 1, 1976
Letter to Dennis Wendling at the New York City Metropolitan Transit Authority from
New York, April 20, 1976
Letter to James McCarthy at the New York City Metropolitan Transit Authority from
New York, April 20, 1976
Letter to Jim Morton, Dean of St. John the Divine, New York, from New York,
April 20, 1976
Letter to Peter Campus at MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, from New York,
[n.d.—Spring 1976]
Additional Statements for Donald Wall’s Article
Donald Wall, “Gordon Matta-Clark’s Building Dissections,” Arts Magazine
(May 1976), 74–79
Letter to Wieslaw Borowski at Galeria Foksai in Warsaw, Poland, from New York,
June 10, 1976
Letter to Wolfgang Becker at Neue Gallery in Aachen, West Germany, from New York,
June 10, 1976
Letter to Industrialist Emilio Rebora in Genoa, Italy, from New York, June 10, 1976
Letter to Yvon Lambert at Galerie Lambert in Paris from New York, June 10, 1976
Letter to Monette Repriels at Galerie Vega in Liege, Belgium, from New York,
June 10, 1976
Letter to Collector Sylvio Perlstein in Antwerp, Belgium, from New York, July 14, 1976
Letter to Gallerist Salvatore Ala in Milan from New York, July 14, 1976
Letter to Helga Retzer at Amerika Haus in Berlin from New York, July 14, 1976
Letter to Paolo Minetti at Galeriaforma in Genoa from New York, July 27, 1976
Letter to Director Florent Bex in Antwerp from New York, July 28, 1976
Letter to Ruth Garcia at Adopt A Building in New York from New York, July 29, 1976
Letter to Nina Felshin, Director of U. S. A. for the 1977 Biennale de Paris in
Washington, DC, from New York, August 2, 1976
Letter to J. W. McCarthy at the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority from
New York, August 25, 1976
Letter to James McCarthy at the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority from
New York, ca. Fall 1976
A Resource Center and Environmental Youth Program for Loisaida: Guggenheim
Fellowship Proposal by Gordon Matta-Clark, 1976
Letter to Artist Carol Goodden in New York from Berlin, West Germany,
October 6, 1976
Letter to Monsieur Diamy at the Service de l’information et Relations Publiques in Paris
from Berlin, West Germany, October 7, 1976
Letter to Anne Alpert in New York from Berlin, West Germany, October 16, 1976
Berlin Wall Idea: If We Follow the Wall, 1976
Letter to Gallerist Salvatore Ala in Milan from New York, December 12, 1976
Press Release for Substrate, 1976