And I guess because of my father’s brief profession in business, social contacts, we were probably more assimilated than most in terms of being Americans. But quite soon after their arrival in United States, they became U.S. culture? Or did you speak German at home?ĮB: Well, we spoke German in the home, but they-and as we spoke about yesterday, there was certainly a German area that they would have lived in early on. LA: Were they interested in assimilating into U.S. And fortunately, they offered me, unbeknownst to them at the time, the opportunity to be “counterculture” or whatever description you’d like to attach to that sort of mid-‘60s, early ‘60s kind of thing. Yeah, so that was sort of the opposite of that. I, on the other hand, flaunted convention for certainly-especially in the ‘60s, much to their dismay.
LA: Do you think that their status as immigrants informed you in any way in your own life?ĮB: Well, I think it’s always a situation where you want to sort of become the opposite of your parents at some point in your life and where they were very cautious and had a certain life in which they were-well, fortunately for me, very comfortable. There was a German community, ostensibly there to work in engineering and toolmaking at various automotive companies, and they were one of a fairly large group at the time. LA: Did your mother come with him or did he come first?ĮB: I don’t know who came first, but they met in Detroit. They emigrated from Germany in the mid-1920s. And how did you-your parents came there from Germany?ĮB: Yes. I was born in Detroit, Michigan, the cultural Mecca of the Midwest, also the homicide capital of the world for more than several decades, which-elicits a certain civic pride. LA: And let’s just start at the very beginning. So thank you, Eugene, for agreeing to be interviewed.
Binder’s history with the arts in Dallas dates back much further, and today we hope to hear some of the memories and stories he has to share with us on this subject. Eugene Binder, former Dallas gallery owner-exhibition space owner (laughs)-who currently lives here in West Texas continuing those interests that started in Dallas in the 1980s. And I’m Leigh Arnold, project researcher at the DMA, and I will be speaking with Mr. Marfa, Texas, and the following interview is part of the Dallas Museum of Art’s History of Contemporary Art in Dallas research project, funded by the Texas Fund for Curatorial Research. What’s the address here?Įugene Binder: First of all, I don’t use the “G” word. We are in the Eugene Binder Gallery in Marfa, Texas. Once you're done, you'll still have money left over for happy hour.Leigh Arnold: All right, so it is March 15, 2012. Completely frame all sides of your artwork with long strips, place shorter pieces at the corners, or just adhere the paper with one segment at the top. Then there's the ubiquitous washi tape, which has as many uses as it does colors. Another option: matching push pins or thumbtacks at each corner of the print. With the help of a discrete nail, you can easily hang any type of binder clip or clamp just slide the top edge of the artwork into its jaws and you're set (some people do add a second clip at the bottom for extra style and stability). The only question left is, what do you hang it with? We've rounded up our favorite devices here, or should we say, our favorite office supplies turned picture hangers. There's good news though: We're all for hanging art unframed.
The price to frame a small poster through one of the many popular online services still starts at $39, which is probably double what you paid for said poster. But while you're still in the life stage of flea-market prints, Etsy posters, and art you made yourself last weekend (same), it just doesn't seem worth it. When you invest in a super-fancy piece of art, you'll probably want to get an equally impressive frame-you know, with matting and glass and such.