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J.S.: Ugh — Judd loathed the word minimalism.

J.D.: But it’s a legitimate description of his style, isn’t it?

J.S.: It’s more of a shorthand label for his whole philosophy. In the early sixties, a number of artists were working in that vein, but Judd applied those ideas to sculpture, painting, furniture, and architecture. He coined the term specific object to describe his work and that of friends like Dan Flavin and John Chamberlain. It meant that when you looked at a fluorescent-light piece by Flavin that it was no longer a fixture, or hardware, or a familiar idea of sculpture. Boom! It’s a specific object. To me 101 Spring Street has become a specific object — a great one.

— Jerry Saltz and Justin Davidson on the Restoration of Donald Judd’s Loft

…to get so specific about something that it becomes something other than what it ordinarily is…

—

Donald Judd’s House, Becoming a Museum

via: NYTimes.com