James Lee Byars was born in Detroit in 1932. An early interest in sculpture and oriental art took him to Japan and the far East before returning to Europe and creating a strong body of work which might be regarded as “romantic minimalism”. By the 1970s he was regarded as one of the USA’s most important conceptual artists.
He was best known for a series of slight performance art actions (such as giving a brief smile to the world after emerging from a museum window) as well as very large and very small sculptural works. The use of paper (and particularly unusual papers) in editions and printed material was also a regular motif. Some of Byars’ works are just a few millimetres in size, others were the size of entire streets.
Byars also created unique letters for many of his friends and these constructions – often written in an unusual “starry” hand – are usually regarded as unique works by the artist on par with his sculptures. They are keenly collected.
Byars suddenly died in Cairo in 1997. His grave is a simple one – and its monument does not match the artist’s pure aesthetic – a final irony.
JAMES LEE BYARS WORKS FROM THE 60S / RECENT WORKS. 1993.
NYC: Michael Werner, 1993 19 x12cm, unpaginated (56)pp plus boards with tipped-on b/w reproduction of a work. The concise exhibition catalogue for two consecutive exhibitions in the Werner Gallery – the first being of works from the early part of Byars’ career (with seven b/w illustrations) and, a second show of more recent “books” (which are usually sculptures) which are all displayed herein as eight full colour plates.
THEPERFECTSMILE. 1993.
Byars, James Lee THEPERFECTSMILE Köln: Museum Ludwig, 1993 25 x 65cm, folded (8 panels) leporello printed gold on thick card. Text in German – the card is able to stand up without support. JOINT AS ISSUED Byars, James Lee THEPERFECTSMILE Köln: Museum Ludwig, 1993 5 x 8cm, 1pp business card with the text THEPERFECTSMILE printed gold on black inside 8 x 11 black custom envelope. JOINT 22.3 x 32cm, black unprinted envelope which contained both of the above items. All fine.
SONNE MOND STERNE. 1993.
A undistributed proof from the unreleased publication of the same name (planned by Edition Cantz). 33 x 33 cm, 2pp silk-screen print (chamois/white) on white double sided astrolux (high gloss) 290 micron card stock. The text is intense and in German and English recto/verso:"THE SUN THE MOON THE STARS....". the white on white printing is hard to read and has created a very beautiful and minimal card multiple. Very fine condition.
Offered together with: 21 x 11cm, 2pp silkscreened black on double sided 290 micron white astrolux cardstock. The announcement /reply card for this edition - this time easily readable - they wanted some sales! Text in German. Fine.
THE CHAIR OF THE ARTIST AT HARVARD. 1994. 1.7cm DIA. BLACK CIRCLE PAPER EPHEMERA.
Eindhoven: Van Abbemuseum, 1994
1.7cm dia. black circle with the text THE CHAIR OF THE ARTIST AT HARVARD printed in tiny typeface in the centre. Unlimited multiple but now very hard to find. VG+. There are three known variants of this multiple - a small black circle, a larger black circle and a 2.5 x 2.5cm black square.
