Bas Jan Ader
On the cusp of the 50th anniversary of the artist’s fateful voyage where he went missing at sea, the Estate of Bas Jan Ader and Meliksetian |Briggs are pleased to announce the release of the first in a series of high-quality artist editions.
This edition is a multiple of the photographic piece with text I’m too sad to tell you, 1970 / 2024 in an edition of 75.
Bas Jan Ader's I'm Too Sad to Tell You is a poignant and deeply introspective photographic work that captures a raw, emotional moment of vulnerability. The photograph shows the artist sitting in front of a neutral, unobtrusive background, his face partially obscured by his hands as he appears to be on the verge of tears. His expression is one of profound sorrow, evoking a sense of emotional isolation and desolation. The simple yet striking composition amplifies the intensity of the moment, highlighting Ader's personal anguish while maintaining an air of universal relatability.
The title, I'm Too Sad to Tell You, speaks directly to the work's emotional depth, suggesting a struggle to articulate or even fully comprehend the pain the artist is experiencing. It conveys a sense of being overwhelmed by emotion, to the point where words fail. In the photograph, Ader's muted posture and downturned face suggest a private, almost confessional moment, inviting the viewer to witness the artist's internal landscape while leaving the exact cause of his sadness open to interpretation.
This work is part of Ader's larger artistic exploration of themes such as vulnerability, loss, and the search for meaning. His rigorous approach in both content and form reflects his fascination with the intersection of personal experience and universal feelings, making I'm Too Sad to Tell You not just a portrait of individual despair, but also a meditation on the human condition itself. Through this photograph, Ader captures the quiet, often unspoken experience of grief, making it a powerful and enduring work in contemporary art.
The artwork is a silver gelatin (silver halide), black & white print on a fiber base, specifically a true silver gelatin baryta based paper, 310 gsm. It is numbered and comes with a signed and stamped certificate of authenticity from the Estate of Bas Jan Ader.
Bas Jan Ader (b. 1942 Winschoten, The Netherlands) received his Bachelor of Fine Arts at the Otis Art Institute of Los Angeles (1965) and his Master's of Fine Arts at the Claremont Graduate School and University Center, Claremont CA (1967). The artist was lost at sea in 1975 during the middle part of what was to be his grand trilogy of works In search of the miraculous.
Recent institutional exhibitions featuring the artist’s work include Lafayette Anticipations, Paris, Museo Jumex, Mexico City, Kunstmuseum Den Haag, The Hague, The Netherlands, La Caixa Forum, Barcelona, Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, Castello di Rivoli, Turin, Italy as well as Viva Arte Viva, the 57th International Art Exhibition at the Biennale di Venezia / Venice Biennale and Universes in Universe at the 30th Sao Paolo Biennial to name a few.
In 2019, Ader's work was featured in a major three person exhibition Disappearing - California c. 1970: Bas Jan Ader / Chris Burden / Jack Goldstein at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth (catalog). In 2025, a major retrospective of the artist’s work will take place at the Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg, Germany,
The artist's work is included in important public collections such as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art / LACMA, Museum of Modern Art / MoMA, New York City, the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York City, the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., the Art Institute of Chicago and the Berkeley Museum of Art, Berkeley, CA among others.
Meliksetian | Briggs is the exclusive representative of the Estate of Bas Jan Ader.