The Artist Marcel Duchamp - Essay Example

Marcel Duchamp Early Life Marcel Duchamp was born on July 28th, 1887 in the town of Blainville, France. His father was a notary, while both of hisbrothers, as well as his sister, were artists -- Jacques Villon became a painter, Raymond became a sculptor, and Suzanne became a painter (Tompkins 1998). His parents also decorated the house with art from his grandfather Emile Nicolle. As a youth Duchamp was sent to a boarding school that emphasized strict adherence to intellectual standards; at this institution Duchamp excelled at mathematics. He began to learn artistic processes here, and Duchamp later remarked that his teacher believed the then contemporary impressionist style were debased and sought to instruct only traditional techniques; as a result, Duchamp’s primary influence became his family. During this formative period Duchamp was predominantly influenced by academic style of art including the post-impressionist and symbolist schools. When Duchamp turned 17 he moved to Paris to pursue a career as an artist. He was immediately influenced by the prevailing artistic trend of cubism and much of his early work reflects these influences; Duchamp’s work, however, reflects more eccentric personal images and psychology than most of the established cubist art. Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2 In 1912 Duchamp completed one of his most renowned works, ‘Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2’. While the painting incorporates traditional cubist elements of shifting perspectives, its cryptic title and focus on the movement of the object have led many critics to identify it as a monumental work (Peters 1996). Like much great art, the painting was derided upon its release. The work was originally supposed to be exhibited in Paris, but the curator asked Duchamp to change the title to which he refused. When it was finally exhibited in a 1913 New York exhibition the painting was even termed, “an explosion in a shingle factory (Peters 110).” The painting is almost ironically referring to the Renaissance ‘nude’ in its title, as the picture goes so far against traditional representation that it avoids any sense of eroticism. In this work we also see the Modernist techniques of cubism and futurism at work (Ackerman 1991). The cubist nature of work speaks to the altered view of perceptions, where reality exists through more than one visual sense, and must be understood from a variety of contexts. The futurist elements of the painting in the mechanical nature of the drawing also avoid traditional Renaissance cultural assumptions, as they embody the industrialized nature of the times (Peters 112). 1912-1914 During this period Duchamp took a job as a clerk in the Bibliotèque Sainte-Geneviève. It was here that he began to study the idea of writers such as Marx Stirner, and Raymond Roussel. Stirner was heavily influenced by the influential theories of Sigmund Freud and developed an ego-centered theory based on Freud’s psychoanalysis that Duchamp claimed greatly influenced his later work (Tompkins 1998). Duchamp also became heavily influenced by the modernist work of the time and developed a great appreciation for such trends as industrialism, and technology. One can see such earlier influences in the emphasis on movement in ‘Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2’. In addition to these influences, Duchamp took a strong interest in the prevailing trends of physics and math. He notably appreciated the theoretical investigations of Henri Poincaré, an early 20th century physicist. Poincaré contended that science and physics, while masquerading behind standards of objectivity, was largely the individual creation of the scientist, and as such scientific claims to objective truth were unfounded. As Duchamp progressed intellectual, so can one identify similar shifts in his later day artistic output. Invention of the Ready-Made Duchamp this period began experimenting with a revolutionary concept of the art object that would have long-term implications for Western forms of art throughout the 20th century. In collaboration with artist Francis Picabia and poet Guillaume Apollinaire Duchamp began formulating a meta-critical vision of art. Where traditional formulations of art -- from Greek sculpture, through Renaissance portraiture and religious imagery, through impressionism and cubism – emphasized the artist’s technical skill and physical artistry, Duchamp sought to root the concept of art in conceptual formulations and chance. This resulted in him stressing linguistic and philosophical aspects of art over the strictly visual elements. Duchamp famously states that, “I am interested in ideas--not merely the visual products. I want to put painting once again to the service of the mind (MOMA, Web).” This new concept became known as the ready-made. Duchamp’s initial ready-made was the ‘Bicycle Wheel’. Constructed in 1913, the ‘Bicycle Wheel’ the beginning of a series of art-objects Duchamp chose for their conceptual value. While the objects occasionally contained small alterations by Duchamp, their role as an art object was radically different from past formulations of art. The function of these objects was to stand in ironic opposition to establishment practices, and to reposition the role of the artist in modern dialogues on art. Duchamp continued to construct these ready-mades, and in 1917 famously offered the R. Mutt urinal, which he titled ‘Fountain’, to the art establishment. Limited in number the urinal was a mockery of ‘high’ art, while through its limited numbers, retained standards of exclusivity. Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors Beginning in 1915 Duchamp started working on a long-term project that he later titled the ‘Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors’ (Tompkins 1998). While it was entirely unique, it marked Duchamp’s return to more a more direct engagement with art after his string of ready-mades. Duchamp continued working on the project until its completion in 1923 (Stafford, Web). The completed work is highly unique and exhibits a complex and cryptic art methodology. The work was created on large panes of glass and critics have said of it that, “the strange mechanical forms in it make up an intricate machine whose workings express his autobiographical experiences and views on sexual and emotional relations and contain many occult references, including alchemist symbolism (Peters, p. 108).” Move to America Around this period Duchamp left Paris for the United States, where he joined the burgeoning New York art scene. He had become disillusioned with the Paris art establishment and wary of his environment as many of his friends and family members had become part of the military service. Upon arriving in New York Duchamp was shocked at the recognition he received among the art establishment. He developed important connections with Man Ray, Katherine Dreier, and patron Walter Conrad Arensberg (Stafford, Web). While he initially spoke minimal English, he offered French lessons and worked in libraries to support himself, gradually gaining better control of the language. His primary patron became Walter Conrad Arensberg. Despite many offers from galleries and outside patrons, Duchamp steadfastly continued work on ‘Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors’ during this period. Rather than accepting a yearly salary, Duchamp agreed to give the completed work for his room and board. He remained in the United States through the conclusion of the First World War, after which he resided in both France and America. Post-War Life While he experimented with the Dada movement in France, which he is said to have heavily influenced, after World War I his artistic output greatly decreased. After 1923 Duchamp primary concern became chess. In 1932 with Chess writer Vitaly Halberstadt he even published a book on the subject called Opposition and Sister Squares are Reconciled (Tompkins 1998). Upon realizing that he would never be able to achieve the level of skill of top-flight masters, Duchamp’s participation in the field resumed that of an amateur. While his artistic output greatly declined, Duchamp still made temporary forays into the art world, notably with experimental attempts at constructing kinetic art. While most individuals believed that Duchamp’s last great work had been the ‘Bride Stripped Bare by her Bachelors’, upon his death it was discovered that Duchamp had constructed a twenty-year project known at the ‘Etant-Donnes’. An elaborate exhibition that could only be viewed through a peephole. There was a period where his legacy was not as renowned as contemporary standards, and his works were rarely exhibited. With the advent of surrealism and its similar emphasis on the absurd, surrealist leaders such as Andre Breton brought Duchamp’s legacy to the foreground and valued his personal character as much as his artistic output. In 1954 Duchamp remarried and lived a quiet domestic life (Tompkins 1998). It wasn’t until the early 1960s that he achieved the world-wide fame he now occupies, as many New York artists began to become influenced by him, arguing that for them, he was a more revolutionary figure than Pablo Picasso. References Ackerman, James S.  Cubism, Futurism, and the Avant-Garde. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1991.  MOMA (2009) ‘Marcel Duchamp’ http://www.moma.org/collection/object.php?object_id=79600 Peters, Antonio. Duchamp and the Modernist Turn.  1st ed. New York, N.Y.: George Braziller, 1996. Stafford, Andrew. ‘Making Sense of Marcel Duchamp’ http://www.understandingduchamp.com/ Tompkins, Calvin (1998). Duchamp: A Biography. Holt Paperbacks. Bibliography Bauer, G. 1989. Duchamps Ubiquitous Puns. In Marcel Duchamp: Artist of the Century, edited by R. Kuenzli and F. M. Naumann, 127-148. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. Bonk, E. 1999. Marcel Duchamp, The Box in a Valise Inventory of an Edition. Translated by D. Britt. New York: Rizzoli. Duchamp, M. (1973), Salt Seller: The Writings of Marcel Duchamp (Marchand du sel) (ed. M. Sanouillet and E. Peterson), New York: Oxford University Press. Housefield, James. "Marcel Duchamp and the Geography of Modern Paris." Geographical Review 92.4 (2002): 477 Schwarz, A. 1997. The Complete Works of Marcel Duchamp. 4th edn. London: Thames and Hudson. (First published 1963) Rabaté, Jean-Michel. "Duchamps Ego." Textual Practice 18.2 (2004): 221-231. Read More