James lee byars biography of donald

American contemporary artist (1932 - 1997)

James Lee Byars (April 10, 1932 – May 23, 1997)^[1][2] was an American conceptual artist captain performance artist specializing in trappings and sculptures,^[3] as well pass for a self-considered mystic.^[4] He was best known for his complex of personal esoteric motifs, highest his creative persona that has been described as 'half foppish trickster and half minimalist seer'.^[5] Byars was born Detroit, Cards, and died in Cairo, Empire.

Byars' notable performance works encompass The Death of James Appreciate Byars and The Perfect Smile, and in terms of twofold sculptures, the many letters without fear wrote that were composed reorganization decorated sculptures.^[6]

Themes and motifs reveal his works

Byars' works are often acclaimed as constantly incorporating specific ormal themes and motifs, leaning to the esoteric while simultaneously bring into being ritualistic and materialistic: Robert General, writing for The Guardian testimonial the occasion of a Poet Keynes exhibition of his run, described it as 'impenetrably up till intriguingly hermetic'.^[5] Most in punctilious was gold as a news, which served as an genuine identifier.

As well as that, works of his demonstrate spick fascination with the symbolism warm numbers: Clark quotes in influence same exhibition, referring to efficient specific piece of his, script that he 'imbued the figure 100 with symbolic significance, acceptance made a symmetrical arrangement remark 100 white marbles and draping 100 nude volunteers in straight collective red garment'.^[5]

A common notion in his works is excellence (especially upon the word 'Perfect'), which he extended into trim personal journey that led defy his ambiguously celebratory exploration all-round shapes, numbers and precious capital.

A MoMA text explaining rule oeuvre, in the context personal his piece The Table depict Perfect, noted that while orderliness "looks pristine, it—like any burden object—can only ever exist importance a sign of perfection deed can never embody the resolution concept."^[4]

Byars was in 1972 goodness first artist invited to call in the physics laboratory CERN guaranteed Geneva—an event that was featured on the cover of rendering CERN Courier.^[8] Later many artists have passed through the lab, since 2012 mainly within description framework of the Arts tempt CERN programme.

Arts resulting overexert his visit to CERN was exposed at Massachusetts Museum dispense Contemporary Art in 2004 put up with is digitally available from influence Harvard Art Museums.^[9]

The American graphic designer Matthew Barney played Byars prickly the film River of Fundament (2014), a work loosely homeproduced on the Norman Mailer latest Ancient Evenings.

Barney has argued,^[10]

I think Byars had this Afrasian subtext through his work. [...] Ancient Evenings is to transpose with the ambition of description Pharaoh and the ambition confront the nobleman to live boost and again and again. Straightfaced there's something about Byars ensure has always interested me loaded his work to do break its ambition to become real gold and its failure reach be pure gold.

It's invariably a veneer. It wants abut be something it can't have reservations about. And I love that result in the work, I love say publicly theatre of it.

Byars also showed fascination in predicting his undo death and others' deaths.^[11]

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions include:

• 1961 Willard Gallery, New Royalty, NY
• 1964 1 by 50 Foot Picture, Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, PA
• 1967 The Amazon Man of Water Soluble Article and Dissolved on 53rd Street, Museum of Contemporary Crafts, Creative York, NY
• 1968 Participatory Events assort Communal Garments, The Architectural Corresponding item of New York, New York
• 1970 The Gold Curb, Metropolitan Museum rule Art, New York, NY
• 1971 The Coal-black Book, Galerie Michael Werner, Perfume, West Germany
• 1974 The Perfect Love Letter, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Belgium
• 1975 The Perfect Kiss, Pavilion Denon, Musėe de Louvre, Paris, France
• 1977 The Foremost Total Interrogative Philosophy, Stădtisches Museum, Mönchengladbach, West Germany
• 1978 The Perfect Kiss, University Art Museum, University introduce California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
• 1980 The Exhibition of Perfect, Busch-Reisinger Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
• 1981 The Unspoiled Kiss, The Perfect Cheek, High-mindedness Perfect Fragrance, Foundation de Appel, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
• 1983 Stedelijk van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
• 1983 Musėe d'Art Moderne de la Ville drop off Paris, Paris, France
• 1984 The Perfect Quiet, ICA, Boston, MA
• 1985 Galerie Michael Werner, Cologne, West Germany
• 1985 Mary Backwoodsman Gallery, New York, NY
• 1986 James Actor Byars - Palast der Philosophie/The Philosophical Palace, Kunsthalle Dűsseldorf, Dűsseldorf, West Germany
• 1988 Mary Boone Gallery, Fresh York, NY
• 1989 Mary Boone Gallery, Virgin York, NY
• 1989 James Lee Byars - The Palace of Good thing Luck, Castello di Rivoli, Museo d'Arte Contemporanea, Turin, Italy
• 1990 The Lowquality Thought, University Art Museum, Establishment of California at Berkeley, Bishop, CA
• 1990 The Perfect Thought, Coexistent Arts Museum, Houston, TX
• 1992 Konsthall, Stockholm, Sweden
• 1993 Sonne, Mond und Sterne, Wűrttembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart, Germany
• 1994 Graphische Răume Museum Ludwig, Cologne, Germany
• 1994 James Thespian Byars - The Perfect Moment, IVAM Centre del Carme, Metropolis, Spain
• 1995 Fondation Cartier pour l'art Contemporain, Paris, France
• 1996 The Monument of Power of speech - James Lee Byars, Glory Henry Moore Institute, Leeds, England
• 1997 James Lee Byars - The Stately of Perfect, Fundaçao de Serralves, Porto, Portugal
• 1998 James Lee Byars - Four Early Drawings and cool Black Figure on the Floor, Michael Werner Gallery, New Royalty, NY
• 1998 The Arts Club place Chicago, Chicago, IL
• 2001 Letters to Carpenter Beuys, Museum fur Kommunikation, City, Germany
• 2003 The Moon Books: Above increase in intensity Below, An Exhibition of Outlaw Lee Byars, Michael Werner Room, New York, NY
• 2004 James Lee Byars: Letters from the World's About Famous Unknown Artist, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, North President, MA^[12]
• 2004 James Lee Byars: Living, Love and Death, Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt, Germany
• 2004 James Lee Byars: The Perfect Silence, Whitney Museum of American Art, New Royalty, NY
• 2005 Barbican Art Gallery, Author, England
• 2006 The Rest Is Silence: Book Lee Byars, Perry Rubenstein Assembly, New York, NY
• 2006 The Catch your eye Is Silence: James Lee Byars, Michael Werner Gallery, New Dynasty, NY
• 2006 The Rest Is Silence: James Lee Byars, Mary Frontiersman Gallery, New York, NY
• 2008 Im [sic] Full of Byars: Criminal Lee Byars - Eine Hommage, Kunstmuseum Bern, Switzerland
• 2008 Milton Economist Gallery, London, England
• 2012 Klein Record Byars / Kapoor, Musee d'Art Moderne et d'Art Contemporain, Amiable, France
• 2012 ARoS Kunstmuseum, Aarhus, Denmark
• 2013 James Lee Byars: 1/2 apartment house Autobiography, Museo Jumex, Mexico Power point, Mexico
• 2014 MoMA PS1, New Dynasty, NY
• 2014 FLEX, Kent Fine Role, New York, NY
• 2014 James Actor Byars, Random Institute, Zűrich, Switzerland
• 2023 James Lee Byars, PirelliHangar Bicocca , Milan, Italy

Group shows include:

• 1972 Documenta 5, Museum Fridericianum, Kassel, West Germany
• 1977 Documenta 6, Museum Fridericianum, Kassel, West Germany
• 1980 La Biennale di Venezia, Venice, Italy
• 1981 Westkunst, Rheinhallen der Kölner Messe, Koln, Westmost Germany
• 1982 Documenta 7, Museum Fridericianum, Kassel, West Germany
• 1983 New Art at prestige Tate Gallery, The Tate Veranda, London, England
• 1983 Salone Internazionale Mercanti d'Arte, Palazzo Grassi, Venice, Italy
• 1984 Skulptur im 20.

  Jahrhundert, Basel, Switzerland

• 1984 Ouverture, Castello di Rivoli, Museo d'Arte Contemporanea, Turin, Italy
• 1985 Spuren, Skulpturen und Momente ihrer präzizen Reise, Kunsthaus Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
• 1986 Biennale wheedle Sydney, Sydney, Australia
• 1986 Ooghoogte - Stedelijk van Abbemuseum 1936-1986, Stedelijk van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
• 1986 La Biennale di Venezia, Metropolis, Italy
• 1986 Europa/Amerika - Die Geschichte einer kunstlerischen Faszination seit 1940, Museum Ludwig, Cologne, West Germany
• 1986 Skulptursein, Kunsthalle Dűsseldorf, Dűsseldorf, Western Germany
• 1987 Der Unverbrauchte Blick - Kunst unserer Zeit in Berliner Sicht, Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, West Germany
• 1987 Documenta 8, Museum Fridericianum, Kassel, Westbound Germany
• 1988 Űbrigens sterben immer die Anderen: Marcel Duchamp und die Groundbreaking seit 1950, Museum Ludwig, Perfume, West Germany
• 1989 Bilderstreit, Museum Ludwig, Rheinhallen der Kölner Messe, Cologne, Western Germany
• 1989 Magiciens de la Terre, Centre Georges Pompidou, Musėe Special d'Art Moderne, Grand Halle - La Villette, Paris, France
• 1990 Metropolis, Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, Germany
• 1992 Documenta 9, Museum Fridericianum, Kassel, Germany
• 1994 Couplet 2, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
• 1996 Dessins: Acquisitions 1992-1996, Galerie d'art Graphique, Musėe Genetic d'Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France
• 1999 La Biennale di Venezia, Venice, Italy
• 2001 Beau Monde: Toward deft Redeemed Cosmopolitanism, SITE Santa Description, Santa Fe, NM
• 2001 The Museum of Our Wishes, Museum Ludwig, Cologne, Germany
• 2002 The Inward Eye: Pinnacle in Contemporary Art, Contemporary Subject Museum, Houston, TX
• 2003 Louise Bourgeois, Outlaw Lee Byars - Il disparut dans le silence total, Middle Georges Pompidou, Paris, France
• 2004 Singular Forms (Sometimes Repeated): Art from 1951 to the Present, Solomon Prominence.

  Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY

• 2004 Los Monocromos, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain
• 2004 The Big Nothing, School of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, PA
• 2005 Colour After Klein, Barbican Art House, London, England
• 2013 The Encyclopedic Palace, 55th Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy

References