Bus, 1967

Bus is perhaps the most celebrated work by Williams, an artist better known
for his multifaceted career as a musician, composer, and comedy television
writer. Consisting of a life-size silkscreened photograph of a Greyhound bus
folded and stored within a compact cardboard box, the work stages a
deliberate mismatch between the enormity of what is represented and the
modest container that holds it. Mirroring this logic—and because a bus
cannot fit within this gallery—this presentation foregrounds the box meant to
house the object which exceeds the space of display.

The inside flap of the box contains text detailing the labor, materials, and
logistics required to produce the work. The deadpan, instructional language
paired with a mischievous insistence on handwork and specificity, becomes
more absurd as it relays a theatrical account of the object’s making:

Actual size photograph of an Actual bus.
10 ft 31⁄2 in. × 36 ft 2 in.) [sic]
Weighs 10 pounds, 7 ounces.
Conceived by Mason Williams.
Photograph by Max Yavno.
Enlargement made from a 16 × 20 print of a 4 × 5 negative. Printed on
billboard stock in 16 sections by silk screen process. Printed by The
Benline Process Color Company of Deland, Florida and Pacific Display of
Angeles, Califfornia [sic]. Hand collated, rolled and transported early in
the morning by three people (two men and one woman) in one car over
a period of several days. Each copy individually hand assembled by three
people, using hands, feet, tape, sissors [sic] and Barlow knife. Assembled
with 120 ft. (per copy) of Scotch Brand double-faced tape (No. 666).
Folded hand and foot by three people.

Assembled and folded quietly on television sound stages on Saturday
mornings in Los Angeles, Califfornia [sic]. Assembly time, nine man hours
per copy.
Cover concept by Bob Willis. Designed from a box found under his bed by
his wife. Cover constructed of corrugated fiberboard, 200 lb. test, #1 white.
Printed and fabricated by Nehms Company of Los Angeles, California.
Published on the 24th of February, 1967, in a limited edition of 200 copies,
of which this number is 147.
Limited copies available, address inquiries to:
Mason Williams
The Big Bus Man
c/o Blockbuster Bus Book Company
451 N. Canon Drive
Beverly Hills, California