Marcel Duchamp Akanksha Chaturvedi

Marcel Duchamp Marcel Duchamp lived from 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968 He was a French artist whose work is most often associated with the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. He is still considered to be one of the best 20 th century artists.

His Life Marcel Duchamp was born in the “Haute- Normandie” region of France He was raised in a family that enjoyed cultural activities. His maternal grandmother was a painter and engraver and she was the one who inspired him with the idea of being an artist As a child he loved to spend time with his family while playing chess, reading books and painting. How did he become an artist, did he get formal training, did his experiences in life have an impact on the work he produced

His Readymade concept In the 1910s – Duchamp invented the “readymade” concept These were ordinary manufactured objects that the artist selected and modified. As an anecdote he called it ‘retinal art’ as this refers to art whose appeal is mainly or exclusively to the eye rather than to the mind. By simply choosing the object (or objects) and repositioning or joining, titling and signing it, the object became art. As the process involved the least amount of interaction between artist and art, it represented the most extreme form of minimalism up to that time.

Roue de bicyclette (Bicycle Wheel) Bicycle Wheel is often considered Duchamp’s first readymade. Conversely, Duchamp explained, he had produced Bicycle Wheel because he enjoyed watching the wheel spinning and thus attached a stool to it as a base. But there was a real reason, and an underlying object which was the reason this was created.

But the concept that lies between the lines is a recurring theme of movement and hypnotic power which is seen in his other artworks like Nude Descending a Staircase (1912) & Rotoreliefs (1935) Roue de bicyclette What are your personal views about this kind of work

His best known Readymade: “Fontaine” In 1917 Duchamp sent a "work" called "Fountain" to the New York "Independent Show” It was a perfectly ordinary urinal which he submitted for an exhibition which, only because its organizers had said that anything that helped cover costs could be displayed.

Once he had purchased it, he turned it up upside down Gave it a name “Fontaine” and signed Richard Mutt (the owner of a large equipment-producing company). So, as it had a name and an author, it had all the required properties of a work of art.

Still, the selection committee turned it down. When the exhibition started, Duchamp asked a friend (who was a rich collector) to ask for Richard Mutt’s “Fontaine”. On learning that it was not on display, this rich collector, who was intending to buy it, was outraged and a big scene was created as it was not showcased. Later Duchamp published a series of articles on “The Richard Mutt Case”. In them, he wrote some of the most revolutionary statements on art. This is how it became Duchamp’s most popular readymade.

Fresh Widow Title is a pun In the United States, (where Duchamp stayed for a while)most windows open upwards. The rare windows that open inwards are known as: French Windows. Thus French Window led to Fresh Widow, and the black squares mirrored her mourning.

This work also portrays western painting tradition and Alberti’s (a famous Italian painter) definition of paintings as “open windows looking out onto the world” Duchamp also had a miniature window built and instead of glass he included the squares of leather to produce: a closed window The closed window is looking into nothing. So the eyes look only at the window, as it has closed the portal to the possible world that lies further ahead.

TIMELINE 1904: Marcel Duchamp joined his brothers in school, in Paris 1909: He started working on Cézanne-inspired painting 1912: Nude Descending a Staircase was was exhibited and he started working on The Large Glass. 1915:He travelled to the United States. 1917: Duchamp submitted his Fountain to the Society of Independent Artists’ selection committee (which he belonged to) using a fake name, Richard Mutt. It was declined, sparking a string of articles explaining the concept: The Richard Mutt Case. 1919:He returned to Paris and worked with the Dadaists. 1920:He returned to New York and co-founded an organization to promote contemporary art by buying works by young artists.

1923: Duchamp abandoned his Large Glass (and rumor had it he was abandoning art altogether). 1926: The Large Glass was exhibited in the Brooklyn Museum. That was when it was cracked. 1932: Duchamp played for the French Chess team and wrote a book on chess. 1938: Produced 300 Boxes containing miniature replicas of his works 1942:Worked with New-York-based surrealist refugees, in particular André Breton, with whom he organized the his first Surrealism exhibition. 1953: Life magazine ran an article on Duchamp. 1954: The Philadelphia Museum of Art opened that exhibited 43 of his works. 1958: Marchand de Sel, the first anthology of Duchamp’s writing, was published. 1959: Robert Lebel published the first essay about Duchamp. 1964: Milan’s Schwartz Gallery recreated 13 lost ready-mades. 1967: The Paris Museum of Modern Art hosted a Raymond Duchamp- Villon/Marcel Duchamp exhibition. 1968:Marcel Duchamp died on 2 October in Neuilly, France.

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