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MARCEL DUCHAMP´S READY-MADES ARE CLASSIFIED
IN FOLLOWING CATEGORIES IN SCHWARZ 1997:
Categories:
Read-made
Assisted Ready-made
Rectified Ready-made
Semi-Ready-made
Provoked Ready-made
Imitated Ready-made
Bred Ready-made, changed to Photograph S 1997
Reciprocal Ready-made changed to Modified Printed Ready-made
S 1997.
Marcel Duchamp describes in his text "Apropos of Ready-mades" 1961: "1913 I got the good idea to fix a bicycle wheel to a kitchen chair and saw it spin.
In New York 1915 I bought a snow shovel and inscribed it with "In advance of the Broken Arm". It was about that time the word readymade came to my mind in order to name this kind of manifestation."
According to Schwarz 1997 Marcel Duchamp has Chosen Following Ready-mades:
Ready-mades:
”Bottle Dryer”, Paris 1914, original lost. S 306.
”Pulled at 4 Pins”, New York 1915, present location unknown (lost).
S 331.
”In Advance of the Broken Arm”, New York 1914, original lost. S 332.
”Emergency in Favour of Twice”, New York 1915, original lost or unrealised notrecorded. S 333.
”Comb”, New York 1916, S 339. Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA).
”Battle Scene”, New York 1916, original destroyed. S 341.
”Traveller's Folding Item”, New York 1916, original lost. S 342.
”French Military Paper”, New York 1918, present location unknown.
S 352.
”Paris Air”, Paris 1919. S 375. PMA.
”The Non-Dada”, New York 1922. S 402. Gabrielle Keiller, London.
”L.H.O.O.Q. Shaved”, edition of approx. 100, New York 1965. S 615.
”Hommage à Cassia (Homage to Cassia)”, edition of 30, New York 1966. S 632.
”Pollyperruque”, New York 1967. S 644. Graphische Sammlung, StaatsgalerieStuttgart.
Assisted Ready-made:
”Bicycle Wheel”, Paris 1913, original lost. S 278.
”With Hidden Noise”, New York 1916. S 340. PMA.
”Fountain”, New York, 1917, original lost. S 345.
”Trébuchet (Trap)”, New York, 1917, original lost, S 350.
”Hat Rack”, New York 1917, original lost. S 351.
”Unhappy Ready-made”, Buenos Aires, 1919 original lost. S 367.
”Belle Haleine: Eau de Voilette (Beautiful Breath: Veil Water)” [Perfume
Bottle], New York 1921. S 388. Private collection Paris.
Rectified Ready-mades:
”Pharmacy”, Rouen 1914. S 283. Collection Arakawa, New York.
”Apolinère Enameled” New York 1917. S 344. PMA.
”Handmade Stereopticon Slide”, Buenos Aries 1918-19. S 365. Museum of Modern Art, New York. (MoMA).
”L.H.O.O.Q.”, Paris 1919. S 369. Private collection Paris.
”Wanted $ 2,000 Reward”, New York 1923. S 403. Collection Louise Hellstrom.
”Pocket Chess Set”, edition of 150 but only 25 assembled, New York 1943, S 504.
Semi-Ready-made:
”Why Not Sneeze Rose Sélavy?”, New York 1921. S 391. PMA.
Provoked Readymades:
”The Corkscrew's Shadow”, New York 1918. S 353 and S 354. Shadow cast by a corkscrew (Tu m´), now at Yale University Art Gallery.
”Urn with the Ashes of Duchamp [‘s Cigar]”, Paris 1965, S 618. Michel
Sanouillet, Nice.
Imitated Rectified Ready-mades:
”Belle Haleine: Eau de Voilette (Beautiful Breath: Veil Water)” [Label],
New York 1921. S 386. Collection Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd, Stockholm.
”Monte Carlo Bond”, a planed edition of 30 only less than 8 assembled Paris 1924. S 406.
”Eau & Gaz á tous les étages (Water & Gas on Every Floor)”, edition of 10 plus 17, Paris 1958. S 560.
”Couple of Laundress's Aprons”, edition of 20, Paris 1959, edition of 20. S 574.
Reciprocal Ready-made:
”A Rembrandt used as an ironing board”, now Schwarz calls it ”Modified Printed Ready-made”.
Among these 34 ready-mades are 12 original missing according to Schwarz, three of these are the ones, which are most often referred to. These are:
”Bicycle Wheel”, 1913 Paris. (59)
”A Re-made of Bottlerack”, 1977, Paris. (60)
”Fountain”, 1917 New York. (61)
Ironically, though these three ready-mades are the most important works of art in the history of art they have never been exhibited in their original version!
MY COMMENTS
According to Schwarz (1969) and Lebel 1959 "In Advance of the Broken Arm" and Traveller’s Folding Item" might have been exhibited in New York 1916 at Stephen Bourgeois Gallery. The works were susequently registered in the catalogue under "Sculptures: Two Ready-mades", but then disappeared. In Schwarz revised edition 1997 he completely omits this information.
This means that when these ready-mades are "exhibited" or reproduced in books they are either photographs of the original or replicas. For example, for the exhibition "Fantastic Art Dada Surrealism" at Museum of Modern Art i New York, 1936-1937, Duchamp signed and sent Man Ray's photography of a Bottle Dryer, which has a shadow at the bottom. This shadow was retouched on the version included in "Box in a Valise".
Almost every readymade on view in museums today are replicas, which Schwarz released in 1964.
Some of Duchamp’s ready-mades are rather unknown such as "Pulled at 4 Pins". S 331. According to Schwarz, this was Duchamp’s first ready-made in New York 1915 . It was an unpainted tin chimney cowl, S 331. It was never recorded. In 1964 a replica was made, a copperplate where Duchamp engraved a chimney. S 609. Today it is available in different editions on several papers released by the Schwarz gallery.
Another unknown ready-made is "The Battle Scene", New York 1916. Now destroyed, it was a mural at Cafe des Artistes, 1 West 67 Street in New York, on which Duchamp signed his name. S 341.
"French Military Paper", 1918, New York, is a typed note-like a letter, signed (from) Marcel Duchamp 1918. S 352.
"The Cork Screw’s Shadow", 1918, New York, S 353, is the shadow in Duchamp’s painting Tu m´ 1918, New York. From the surface of the painting a bottlebrush stands out in right angel from a tromp l'œil rip mended with three actual safety pins. Think how close Duchamp was to anticipate the cut of Fontana´s canvas... The same painting incorporates the shadows of his ”Bicycle Wheel” and ”Hat Rack”, as well. Duchamp told Schwarz: "You can see the shadow of the cork screw as a ready-made rather than the cork screw itself".
Duchamp´s myth tells us that he retired 1924 in order to play chess. As previously explained, this is only partially true. He played a lot of chess and was a member of the French National Team of Chess.
Meanwhile, Duchamp, the artist, had gone underground and continued to work, in silence, on his last major work "Etant donnés: 1° la chutte d'eau, 2° le gaz d'eclairage." This piece was revealed only after his death October 1. 1968.
Duchamp’s ready-mades have had an enormous impact on our conception of art.
Yet there are very few, who really comprehend the extent of this transgressive break that lead to new paradigm of art.
By choosing an object without aesthetic consideration, Duchamp did an artistic castling, which many still cannot accept.
He went further than that, into, what Hector Obalk calls, "introthine" a world where everything is superthin, something you could neither touch nor see. (62)
In my view, Duchamp created his own syntax, i.e. a conceptual meta art - an art with cross-references to his own works and to other artists´ works. He created new ethereal and enigmatic works by interacting aspects of chance and ignorance.
His art is an open concept of art with endless possibilities-his own mind as a readymade.
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