"Dada: 1916-1923," Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, April 15 to May 9, 1953

Currently not on view

"Dada: 1916-1923," Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, April 15 to May 9, 1953

1953

Marcel Duchamp (American (born France), 1887–1968)

After designing an exhibition catalogue that could be printed on a single sheet, Marcel Duchamp declared that copies should be crumpled before distribution. A gesture that undercut artistic convention and what Duchamp called the “seriousness” of the exhibition catalogue, the act also dramatizes the process of transformation. First Duchamp turned commercially produced paper into an exhibition catalogue; then, audaciously, he turned the catalogue into wastepaper. Finally, displayed here in a context that draws attention to its sculptural qualities, the wadded paper is transformed into art.

Currently not on view

Object Details

Title:

"Dada: 1916-1923," Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, April 15 to May 9, 1953

Date:

1953

Artist:

Marcel Duchamp (American (born France), 1887–1968)

Medium:

Letterpress exhibition catalogue and poster designed by Duchamp; crumpled version

Dimensions:

Overall, approximate: 4 3/4 × 7 1/8 × 6 1/4 inches (12.1 × 18.1 × 15.9 cm) Sheet (unfolded): 38 1/4 × 24 3/4 inches (97.2 × 62.9 cm)

Classification:

Prints

Credit Line:

Gift of Jacqueline, Paul, and Peter Matisse in memory of their mother, Alexina Duchamp, 1998

Accession Number:

1998-4-49

Geography:

Printed in New York, New York, United States, North and Central America

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Currently not on view