What matters to the reclusive artist, Carl Andre

The American minimalist artist Carl Andre is a mysterious figure, perhaps best known for his grid-based floor sculptures but also for large, outdoor public artworks and small sculptures, poetry and installations. At the heart of Andre’s vision lies a commitment to seeing things as elements: as separable self-contained units. In an exclusive exchange with Phaidon.com, Andre reveals key elements to his work and workings.

Q: What's important to you as an artist?

Carl Andre: The attempt to create material conditions I have not experienced before. Matter mattering.

Q: What have been key moments or projects in your development as an artist?

CA: I have always been interested in the properties of materials. The Periodic Table of elements is my spectrum. The bins of metals in my father's workshop.

Q: Can you describe the importance of materials in feeding your inspiration for sculptures?

CA: My sculptures are specimens of matter.

Q: You also write poetry. Can you say a bit about this form of expression in relation to your art?

CA: My mother wrote poetry. My father read poetry to me.

Q: As someone who has chosen to remain out of the public spotlight, how important is your art in maintaining your communication with the wider public?

CA: Attention should be paid to my sculptures and poetry, not to me.

Q: What does it mean to you to have done this book Carl Andre: Things in Their Elements?

CA: This book has been assembled by others from fragments of my work. It is like a geological core sample.

Q: What would you like readers to take away from this book?

CA: I hope that this book will give pleasure to those who read it and perhaps helps to bring my sculpture and poetry to the attention of a wider audience.

Carl Andre, thank you.

Carl Andre: Things in Their Elements is a thorough and well-illustrated account of this leading minimalist artist.