Byars lived in Japan for ten years and was heavily influenced by Japanese culture. This drawing, which stretches over 210 feet when fully extended, was first shown in a performance at a temple in Kyoto
in 1964, in which a friend of Byars, dressed in black ceremonial robes, slowly unfolded and arranged the work in various configurations. The simplicity of Byars's single, continuous black line on a rhythmically
arranged surface highlights the performative nature of the drawing and creates a link with the ritualized elegance of traditional Japanese theater practices.

Gallery label from

2007.

Medium Crayon on Japanese paper, joined and folded
Dimensions unfolded 12" x 210' 9" (30.3 cm x 64.23 m); folded 12 x 12 x 3 3/4" (30.3 x 30.3 x 9.5 cm)
Credit Gift of the artist
Object number 47.1965
Department Drawings and Prints

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