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Marcel Duchamp

Made by Tonya Sedgwick and Eric Wang

Marcel Duchamp was born into a family of artists. Starting his career by drawing cartoons for Paris periodicals, he ultimately painted in multiple different styles, most notably including Cubism, Surrealism, and Dada. The painting that gained him the most notoriety, at first rejected or unnoticed in Paris galleries, is "Nude Descending a Staircase No. 2." It was a hit in New York City. He continued to work with nudes and sexual themes--something that was traditionally not acceptable within Cubism. After this, he moved to mechanical and geometric forms, leading to the first Ready-Made, a form of art in which an artist chooses a normal object that becomes art simply because the artist has chosen and displayed it. After the start of WWI, Duchamp moved to the United States. He would continue to produce art as a member of the avante-garde both in New York and Paris, throughout the rest of his life. He was also an avid chess player. Duchamp was only minimally influential--predominantly among his close friends--until the 1950s/1960s. After an exhibition of his work at each of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and MOMA in NYC, his reach broadened. He influenced such artists as Andy Warhol, and the development of Pop art. Source: http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?criteria=O%3AAD%3AE%3A1634&page_number=1&template_id=6&sort_order=1&displayall=1#skipToContent

Created: October 15th, 2014

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Below is Duchamp's most famous work, "Nude Descending a Staircase No. 2." As it was instrumental in the art world taking notice of him, it seemed appropriate to start here. This piece, which Duchamp created during a period in which he was influenced by Cubism, was originally censored from a Gallery (which was co-headed by his older brothers and friends). They claimed "A nude never descends the stairs--a nude reclines." 

Apparent in this work is Duchamp's mechanical style--which uses harsh lines, sharp corners, and a good deal of repetition in order to break the subject up in to it's components--and create the feeling of movement across the canvas. The piece, which follows the rule of thirds and utilizes a lot of diagonals, has almost no background, and only drab colors. The figure itself is made up of hundreds of small shapes, put together to create the image. The staircase is less detailed, and more obvious, denoting it's stationary, uninteresting presence. The painting plays with perception because it creates a kind of blurred image, reminiscent of actual motion. It is hard to make out the form unless the observer ponders the painting for awhile. But then, the mind fills in the blanks and accepts that this thing could be human.

Source: http://www.philamuseum.org/collections/permanent/51449.html

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The next picture, called Dulcinea, was painted in 1911, and is about Duchamp's fantasy of a woman on the streets whom Duchamp calls "Dulcinea" in various states of undressing. The composition was an experiment in chronophotography and depicted Dulcinea in five sequencing positions, baring more skin from one to the next. This painting contains many similar elements to, and arguably lead up to "Nude Descending a Staircase #2". We can see the similar diagonal composition and monochrome feel in both, all the while following his theme of nudity and sexuality. 

There are however many differences as well. Duclinea focuses a lot less jarring lines, and used mostly smooth curves and soft lines. And although we can see remnants of many shapes, they were a lot less intense and creates a smooth gradient contouring the woman's body. While looking at this picture, my eyes are lead along the path which Duchamp created intentionally, which travels from the back corner and around to the front, and hints at movements through the canvas.

 


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Marcel Duchamp was born into a family of artists. Starting his career by drawing cartoons for Paris periodicals, he ultimately painted in multiple different styles, most notably including Cubism, Surrealism, and Dada. The painting that gained him the most notoriety, at first rejected or unnoticed in Paris galleries, is "Nude Descending a Staircase No. 2." It was a hit in New York City. He continued to work with nudes and sexual themes--something that was traditionally not acceptable within Cubism. After this, he moved to mechanical and geometric forms, leading to the first Ready-Made, a form of art in which an artist chooses a normal object that becomes art simply because the artist has chosen and displayed it. After the start of WWI, Duchamp moved to the United States. He would continue to produce art as a member of the avante-garde both in New York and Paris, throughout the rest of his life. He was also an avid chess player. Duchamp was only minimally influential--predominantly among his close friends--until the 1950s/1960s. After an exhibition of his work at each of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and MOMA in NYC, his reach broadened. He influenced such artists as Andy Warhol, and the development of Pop art.

Source: http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?criteria=O%3AAD%3AE%3A1634&page_number=1&template_id=6&sort_order=1&displayall=1#skipToContent