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.
THE PALACE OF GOOD LUCK. 1989. OBJECT MULTIPLE AS INVITE.
Rivoli: Castello di Rivoli, 1989 10.5 x 15cm, closed printed envelope - black on gold paper. The announcement for a solo show by Byars - the envelope has inside three small plastic balls that can only be found by felling through the paper. An invite in the form of an object multiple. Slight wear to the outside of the envelope due to the plastic balls creating a stress on the paper else VG+ (and unopened). Scarce.
P.I.T.L. UNIQUE WORK IN A SERIES. 1990s.
N.p.: s.p., n.d. 24cm, 4pp dia. black card circle which is folded along a slightly flattened edge on the left. Opens up to display the text “P.I.T.L.” handwritten by Byars in his starry hand. Unique within a series of such works all hand made. Limitation of series unknown.
P.I.I.T.L. (PERFECT IS IN THE LOUVRE). 1990.
Florence: Exempla / Exit Editions / Zona Archives, 1990 21 x 14.5 cm, 4pp. Self-covers. Artist’s book – the title text stands for “PERFECT IS IN THE LOUVRE” and the book is a parody of (or hommage to) the format and typographic style of the Nouvelle Revue Françaisem Editions Gallimard. One of 1,000 issued. Fine. Now scarce.
UNTITLED (BIBLIOTECA NAZIONALE FIRENZE). 1990. VERY RARE BYARS’ EMPHEMERA – NOT IN THE BYARS CATALOGUE RAISONNE
Firenze: Zona Archives, 1990 22 x 5.7cm, 2pp strip of card, creased for folding and printed on both sides – on one with a small colour image of the artist and the whole side laminated – and on the reverse in one section there is the text ‘James Lee Byars, Bilblioteca Nazionale, Firenze, Zona Archives, Novembre 1990’. The whole is designed to be folded into a cube (with open top and bottom). Extremely scarce emphera from Byars and not in the Byars catalogue raisonne. Fine condition.
THE GRAND SALON OF JAMES LEE BYARS. c. 1990. HAND ADDRESSED BY BYARS
Texas: Contemporary Arts Museum, 1990 14 x 20.5cm printed black envelope with a text (“Contemporary Arts Museum invites you to the Perfect Thought by James Lee Byars…..”) in gold calligraphy on the front, enclosed is a length of golden thread. V Hand addressed and mailed by Byars to Christian Germaine and his family of Paris.
TWO HANDWRITTEN LETTERS BY JAMES LEE BYARS TO BRANDON KRALL BOTH PAGES IN HIS STARRY SCRIPT. UNIQUE NO DATE (EARLY 90s)
Two folded black pieces of hand edged paper – 30 x 32cm, and 32.5 x 29cmm. Both with handwritten text in gold ink with Byars’ unmistakable starry stylings. The first seems to read “B I **** luck try that on yr modest group (the ***** of Godess??) you I hope you have a very creative” And the second: ” time. Have call’d S 7 – I made it all official SEV times (??) Ate 8 – mouthfuls of **** yeats (years?). You keeping him here?? 9 – Make me some luck please. How material is a work 10 – make me some faith?? What is a work?? 11 Thank ytou for yr letter Let’s meet up soon Yrs JLB.” Bother are hard to read. We understand these were sent to Brandon Krall (the B is for Brandon) from who we purchased the letters. The introduction of the numbering in the second letter from 9 is curious – but the two clearly related to each other and one text continues from the previous one. The letters were delivered by hand to Krall by Byars. Fine condition. Unique.
HANDWRITTEN LETTER BY JAMES LEE BYARS TO BRANDON KRALL . UNIQUE NO DATE (EARLY 90s)
A heavily crushed thin sheet of black paper (sent to Brandon Krall) with the hand-written text “Ideal” in the centre in red ink. Date unknown but 1990s. Some tiny tears to the paper where the thin tissue has been folded during the crushing. The work was given by Byars in this form (by hand to Krall).
HANDWRITTEN LETTER ON FOLDED CARD BY JAMES LEE BYARS. UNIQUE NO DATE (EARLY 90s)
35 x 25cm, 4pp (folded single sheet of black card) with A the hand-written letter which reads “Brandon ****** standing up is ideal” in gold ink. Date unknown but early 1990s. The work was given by Byars in this form (by hand to Krall). The writing is so hard to read with the embellishments that this is almost an abstract work. VG condition (some minor edge damage to the card not affecting text) and unique. If you can decipher the text then do contact us!