Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) was a French painter, sculptor and writer, naturalized U.S. citizen in 1955.
Inventor of ready-mades in the early twentieth century, his artistic approach still has a major influence on various trends of contemporary art. Considered to be confidential at first, his works started to be widely circulated in the 60s, when most of the ready-mades—having disappeared through the artist’s various relocations or being simply destroyed—were reissued. In 1964, the Schwartz Gallery in Milan, Italy suggested they (re)make his ready-mades, in an edition of 8. Considering them as originals, since the former had been lost, this episode allowed Duchamp to bring into question a concept that is at the very core of art history, the term original being inappropriate or even senseless for a ready-made. Duchamp insists on this notion by signing one of these objects, the Porte-bouteilles, « Marcel Duchamp, Antique certifié » (certified antique). In the same spirit, VOX presents an authentic Boîte-en-valise (G series, 47 copies).
