The reclusive artist David Byrd, who died shortly after his first exhibition in 2013 at the age of 87, had painted all his life. In this 10-minute video, excerpted from a series of interviews with Byrd and documentation of the house, studio and gallery he built, he reads from his book, Montrose VA: 1958-1988, which he considered his most important work. A compilation of sketches, colored pencil drawings, and handwritten notes, it chronicles the artist’s experiences and observations when he was an orderly in the psychiatric ward of the Veterans Administration Hospital in upstate New York.

For the video click the link at the bottom.

Find the book here.