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Marchand du Sel: The Essential Writings of Marcel Duchamp
English, French (translation)
196 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1973
18 people are currently reading
1323 people want to read
About the author
Marcel Duchamp
116 books121 followersMarcel Duchamp (also known as Rrose Sélavy) was a French artist (he became an American citizen in 1955) whose work and ideas had considerable influence on the development of post-World War I Western art, and whose advice to modern art collectors helped shape the tastes of the Western art world.
While he is most often associated with Dada and Surrealism, his participation in Surrealism was largely behind the scenes, and after being involved in New York Dada, he barely participated in Paris Dada.
Thousands of books and articles attempt to interpret Duchamp's artwork and philosophy, but in interviews and his writing, Duchamp only added to the mystery. The interpretations interested him as creations of their own, and as reflections of the interpreter.
A playful man, Duchamp prodded thought about artistic processes and art marketing, not so much with words, but with actions such as dubbing a urinal "art" and naming it Fountain. He produced relatively few artworks as he quickly moved through the avant-garde rhythms of his time.
While he is most often associated with Dada and Surrealism, his participation in Surrealism was largely behind the scenes, and after being involved in New York Dada, he barely participated in Paris Dada.
Thousands of books and articles attempt to interpret Duchamp's artwork and philosophy, but in interviews and his writing, Duchamp only added to the mystery. The interpretations interested him as creations of their own, and as reflections of the interpreter.
A playful man, Duchamp prodded thought about artistic processes and art marketing, not so much with words, but with actions such as dubbing a urinal "art" and naming it Fountain. He produced relatively few artworks as he quickly moved through the avant-garde rhythms of his time.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
February 5, 2019
3.5/5. More for die-hards, this collection is sometimes highly oblique. But perseverance is rewarded by his wit and wisdom, and he remains an artistic and philosophical beacon for me. I found “Dialogues” by Cabanne the more accessible study though the two go very well together.
February 16, 2023
This book of writing and notes from Marcel Duchamp made for his work or randomly just proves he was ahead of his time and would be even now. Many things Duchamp did in his life as an artist will never be generally understood or accepted. I think that in some strange way still applies today, in different forms and perspectives, but it is the same premise of what is and isn't art, is and isn't shocking and is and isn't appropriate will probably forever be universal, seeing as esthetics will never be an exact science, try as the professionals in the field might, a lot of that is subjective to individuals, culture and many other factors which are especially true to modern art, I always thought.
That being said. I would probably not recommend this book to someone who has no appreciation or general knowledge of Marcel Duchamp's work, because in such cases it could be slightly easier to miss the deep meaning behind the words and almost scientific approach Duchamp had to his art. Rather than learning about his art, you see his approach to creations and way of thinking.
That being said. I would probably not recommend this book to someone who has no appreciation or general knowledge of Marcel Duchamp's work, because in such cases it could be slightly easier to miss the deep meaning behind the words and almost scientific approach Duchamp had to his art. Rather than learning about his art, you see his approach to creations and way of thinking.
May 21, 2023
La calificación es algo baja porque en lo personal me pareció un libro aburrido, con esto no quiero decir que sea un mal libro, lo que pasa es que da la sensación de estar leyendo un libro académico pues se centra en la obra intelectual de Marcel Duchamp. Seguramente a un profesional del arte especializado en arte moderno o Dada le parecería una joya (porque realmente creo que lo es) ya que a lo largo de todas las hojas podemos ver un poco del proceso creativo de Duchamp así como su visión del arte y su filosofía de vida. El libro tiene sus secciones entretenidas como también aburridas, una gran parte del libro está dedicado al análisis y descripción de las notas realizadas por Duchamp para la creación de su obra maestra "El Gran Vidrio" o "La novia desnudada por sus solteros". A lo largo de leer las notas y al leer los análisis del editor podemos darnos una idea de la línea de pensamiento de Marcel, a mi entender , en su gran vidrio quería hacer una maquina/obra de arte que se nutriera de conceptos interpretados por el observador de la pieza. Se que suena complicado pero tratare de desmenuzar lo que acabo de decir, esto obviamente se entiende más al leer el libro. Para Marcel Duchamp el lenguaje es un elemento más de la composición final o la obra de arte, así como lo serían los colores, las formas y los materiales (Lo cual , para mi tiene sentido, cada época artística viene con nuevas normas y elementos). Entonces sabiendo esto, la intención (Porque a palabras de él nunca terminó su obra) de Duchamp para el gran vidrio era el de formar una obra plástica que al momento de exponerse contará con una caja o par de cajas las cuales tendrían dentro notas las cuales a forma de guía brindaran una lógica a la máquina artística que quería lograr. Mencionó maquina porque en las notas literal se mencionan conceptos de ingeniería eléctrica en general como: Motor, Pistón, Gasolina, Cilindro, Energía, etc. Duchamp le daba una lógica a los elementos pictóricos que se veían expuestos en su gran vidrio, al final me da la impresión que la máquina se terminaba de armar en la mente de quien mira y lee la obra. Para muchos el gran vidrio pudiera parecer pura basura amontonada porque rompe con todas las reglas clásicas de la obra pictórica, pero el hecho de que haya innovado y haya logrado embeber el lenguaje a la obra de arte moderna se me hace un logro tremendo, me atrevo a decir que Marcel Duchamp es uno de los pioneros de lo que sería el arte del siglo XXI. Quisiera recalcar que esto es el resultado de la innovación científica que se vivió en la época de Marcel Duchamp pues se desarrollo al mismo tiempo que las nuevas teorías de la física cuántica y la sofisticacion de los procesos industriales, en las notas se puede observar la fuerte influencia que tuvieron en su arte. Otro gran segmento del libro son las opiniones de Duchamp sobre las obras de sus contemporáneos, si me preguntan está fue la mejor parte del libro pues podemos ver una narrativa más intelectual , más coherente pues Duchamp toma un tono de crítico más que de artista, entre los artistas mencionados más destacados se encuentran:
Man Ray, Picasso, Mattise, Giorgio de Chirico, Brancusi y Max Weber.
Entre otros claro.
También se habla un poco sobre sus "readymade" que son obras artísticas en las cuales los elementos que conforman la composición no son más que artefactos ya manufacturados despojados de su función natural para asignarles la categoría de obra de arte, a mi ver estos suelen ser más como una nueva vertiente de la escultura y en lo personal los encuentro interesantes. Uno de sus readymades más famoso es su rueda de bicicleta sobre un banco, en este ejemplo es clara la intención de Duchamp pues despoja a la rueda de su función de desplazar y a su vez al unirla al banco le quita a este último la posibilidad de servir como lugar de descanso. A lo largo de su carrera Duchamp realizó muchos de estos pero en sus notas menciona que tuvo que aprender a controlarse y tener cuidado al crearlos ya que los readymades se encontraban por todos lados. Influencia de estos podemos ver hoy en día en el arte actual, simplemente recordemos el platano pegado con cinta de Mauricio Cattelan, donde más que la obra en sí, lo valioso sería el valor intelectual que guarda dentro, ese discurso conformado por el lenguaje que termina de crear la nueva obra artística.
Por último tenemos la sección de frases o rimas divertidas que es muy extensa y en mi opinión muy cansada ya que la creatividad se aprecia mucho más si uno domina el idioma francés, las traducciones resultan débiles a falta de la fonetica rítmica del español. Cabe mencionar que Duchamp se creó un alter-ego para realizar esto juegos de palabras, de hecho era una mujer llamada Rose Selavy y literal se vestía de mujer al ponerse a trabajar en sus versos. Creo que puedo entender el impacto psicológico de interpretar un personaje, supondría que la creatividad fluye de otra forma pero al final de cuentas quien soy yo para tratar de entender las razones de este genio. Marcel Duchamp además de ser artista, crítico y pensador era un brillante jugador de ajedrez, lo cual para mí es el argumento más sólido para confirmar la genialidad de Duchamp ya que llegó a ser parte del equipo nacional francés de ajedrez y llego a competir contra lo mejores jugadores del momento (wow verdad?).
Para finalizar esta reseña me gustaría recomendar la obra de Marcel Duchamp ya que considero que desafío las maneras de pensar de su época como cualquier persona revolucionaria, aparte de que estudiar su visión artística desarrolla nuevas maneras de hacer fluir la creatividad pues rompe con los modelos tradicionales.
Man Ray, Picasso, Mattise, Giorgio de Chirico, Brancusi y Max Weber.
Entre otros claro.
También se habla un poco sobre sus "readymade" que son obras artísticas en las cuales los elementos que conforman la composición no son más que artefactos ya manufacturados despojados de su función natural para asignarles la categoría de obra de arte, a mi ver estos suelen ser más como una nueva vertiente de la escultura y en lo personal los encuentro interesantes. Uno de sus readymades más famoso es su rueda de bicicleta sobre un banco, en este ejemplo es clara la intención de Duchamp pues despoja a la rueda de su función de desplazar y a su vez al unirla al banco le quita a este último la posibilidad de servir como lugar de descanso. A lo largo de su carrera Duchamp realizó muchos de estos pero en sus notas menciona que tuvo que aprender a controlarse y tener cuidado al crearlos ya que los readymades se encontraban por todos lados. Influencia de estos podemos ver hoy en día en el arte actual, simplemente recordemos el platano pegado con cinta de Mauricio Cattelan, donde más que la obra en sí, lo valioso sería el valor intelectual que guarda dentro, ese discurso conformado por el lenguaje que termina de crear la nueva obra artística.
Por último tenemos la sección de frases o rimas divertidas que es muy extensa y en mi opinión muy cansada ya que la creatividad se aprecia mucho más si uno domina el idioma francés, las traducciones resultan débiles a falta de la fonetica rítmica del español. Cabe mencionar que Duchamp se creó un alter-ego para realizar esto juegos de palabras, de hecho era una mujer llamada Rose Selavy y literal se vestía de mujer al ponerse a trabajar en sus versos. Creo que puedo entender el impacto psicológico de interpretar un personaje, supondría que la creatividad fluye de otra forma pero al final de cuentas quien soy yo para tratar de entender las razones de este genio. Marcel Duchamp además de ser artista, crítico y pensador era un brillante jugador de ajedrez, lo cual para mí es el argumento más sólido para confirmar la genialidad de Duchamp ya que llegó a ser parte del equipo nacional francés de ajedrez y llego a competir contra lo mejores jugadores del momento (wow verdad?).
Para finalizar esta reseña me gustaría recomendar la obra de Marcel Duchamp ya que considero que desafío las maneras de pensar de su época como cualquier persona revolucionaria, aparte de que estudiar su visión artística desarrolla nuevas maneras de hacer fluir la creatividad pues rompe con los modelos tradicionales.
December 16, 2021
Sometime in the mid-'10s (2015?), reading this collection of Duchamp's hard-to-classify texts was for me a revelation on par with my then recent discovery of Gertrude Stein (also roughly in that period) and of conceptual poetry - late discoveries, as I spent most of my high school and college years "worshipping" instead the likes of Tristan Tzara, whom I revered for his colorful quasi-noise poetry of his Dada period...
As I was becoming increasingly neurotic in the mid-'10s, even before gaining awareness of my autism, my tastes have changed. I like to read this volume as a collection of poetry (except, for instance, those articles on fellow artists), poetry in the expanded field, if you will. Unlike Tzara, Duchamp was never interested in anything resembling traditional poetry. But texts such as the one on "the" or the four cards with supposed extracts from a bigger text that does not actually exist - these can be read as conceptual poetry today (alongside stuff from Fluxus and Oulipo).
The notes around the "Bride", which include opaque technical instructions full of dry humor (and stuff that I am not sure to what degree passes acceptable nowadays according to feminists, with or without trusting the likes of Deleuze) but also other miscellaneous stuff, remain still so puzzling to me - at the time, I was still not completely aware of Ulises Carrión, despite having some notion of what an artist's book is, so I found here an amazing example of how a traditional book needs not to be always the way to publish, and that writing can not only jump between functional genres, but also refuse to settle on particular ones.
6 years later, I still return occasionally to this - its novelty is still fairly enduring, despite my tastes perhaps slowly making way for a slant return of more lyrical or traditionally literary approaches.
As I was becoming increasingly neurotic in the mid-'10s, even before gaining awareness of my autism, my tastes have changed. I like to read this volume as a collection of poetry (except, for instance, those articles on fellow artists), poetry in the expanded field, if you will. Unlike Tzara, Duchamp was never interested in anything resembling traditional poetry. But texts such as the one on "the" or the four cards with supposed extracts from a bigger text that does not actually exist - these can be read as conceptual poetry today (alongside stuff from Fluxus and Oulipo).
The notes around the "Bride", which include opaque technical instructions full of dry humor (and stuff that I am not sure to what degree passes acceptable nowadays according to feminists, with or without trusting the likes of Deleuze) but also other miscellaneous stuff, remain still so puzzling to me - at the time, I was still not completely aware of Ulises Carrión, despite having some notion of what an artist's book is, so I found here an amazing example of how a traditional book needs not to be always the way to publish, and that writing can not only jump between functional genres, but also refuse to settle on particular ones.
6 years later, I still return occasionally to this - its novelty is still fairly enduring, despite my tastes perhaps slowly making way for a slant return of more lyrical or traditionally literary approaches.
July 25, 2021
Duchamp was an artist not a writer and these writings aren't poems, essays, short stories or even diaries. There are short biographical paragraphs on Surrealist artists and contributors that were written for publication but other than that mostly these are ephemera and notes. Some of the writing he considered essential to his art in particular notes related to his masterwork, 'The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even' but otherwise he wouldn't have had any interest to this material getting published.
So why did I care to read it? Mostly to better understand Duchamp's relationships to words and language. He believed in words and used them frequently to enhance his art. He also coined terms that have become part of our language like readymades and mobiles. However, his basic attitude towards language was that it couldn't perform the heavy lifting that was expected of it. Particularly in the realm of philosophy or art criticism he felt words would not get a person very far in knowing how to think about reality.
Words were useful as part of an instruction manual which is why he labored over the notes related to 'The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even' That art work was like a complex imaginary diagram that needs suitable explanation to be appreciated.
There are two examples of Duchamp writings that give a flavor of his thinking. The first is his exploration of dimensions. He is particularly interested in idea of the fourth dimension which is what we can't perceive. He makes the simple point that the representation of a third dimensional plane is only understood from a viewer situated in the fourth dimension. The other is the 'reverse readymade' which would be like taking a large Rembrandt painting and using it as an ironing board.
Both of these uses of language, the discussion of the fourth dimension and the reverse readymade forces the individual to question received knowledge. Much of what is received is via reading comprehension. Duchamp liked to force his audience to be jarred into fresh realities. He loved puns for that reason. A work of art called the Fresh Widow is that of an opaque structure of a French Window. Duchamp like to play with us; what if a typo is actual a portal?
So why did I care to read it? Mostly to better understand Duchamp's relationships to words and language. He believed in words and used them frequently to enhance his art. He also coined terms that have become part of our language like readymades and mobiles. However, his basic attitude towards language was that it couldn't perform the heavy lifting that was expected of it. Particularly in the realm of philosophy or art criticism he felt words would not get a person very far in knowing how to think about reality.
Words were useful as part of an instruction manual which is why he labored over the notes related to 'The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even' That art work was like a complex imaginary diagram that needs suitable explanation to be appreciated.
There are two examples of Duchamp writings that give a flavor of his thinking. The first is his exploration of dimensions. He is particularly interested in idea of the fourth dimension which is what we can't perceive. He makes the simple point that the representation of a third dimensional plane is only understood from a viewer situated in the fourth dimension. The other is the 'reverse readymade' which would be like taking a large Rembrandt painting and using it as an ironing board.
Both of these uses of language, the discussion of the fourth dimension and the reverse readymade forces the individual to question received knowledge. Much of what is received is via reading comprehension. Duchamp liked to force his audience to be jarred into fresh realities. He loved puns for that reason. A work of art called the Fresh Widow is that of an opaque structure of a French Window. Duchamp like to play with us; what if a typo is actual a portal?
May 2, 2024
"The Writings of Marcel Duchamp" is an essential work for anyone interested in contemporary art and 20th-century avant-garde. In this collection of writings, Marcel Duchamp, one of the most influential artists of the last century, shares his reflections, theories, and provocative ideas about art and creativity. From his famous statements on the ready-made to his experiments with conceptual art, Duchamp challenges established conventions and redefines the very nature of art. His writing is incisive, intelligent, and full of a subtle wit that invites the reader to question their assumptions about art and reality. This collection offers a fascinating insight into Duchamp's thinking and his lasting impact on the art world. Overall, "The Writings of Marcel Duchamp" is a must-read for anyone interested in exploring the boundaries of art and creativity.
May 5, 2023
Marcel Duchamp is to me, a never ending discovery. His thought process, and his way of thinking about art are probably my favorite aspects of him. His way of organizing, his concepts on every one of his pieces, his thoughts on the creative process, all come together in this book which is not lineal at all, I think it can accompany other books, and of course his art. I definitely will keep this very close to me.
August 10, 2019
This collection seems to pretty complete as far as I can tell. There are many examples of Duchamp's nonsense dada writings as well as lectures that he gave later in life on art. Also included are his notes to the Large Glass (The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even)Some of his humor doesn't translate from French very well but some of it appears to have been written in English as he was also fluent in that language. Many years ago I read another collection of Duchamp's writings called The Salt Seller. These writings certainly bring to mind a certain seaside aside.
August 21, 2023
Et qui libre? L' Equilibre
October 21, 2007
still not finished... Duchamp is next in line from Alfred Jarry, and his time is only just arriving. Once you clear the debris of the alchemical/pataphysical/pseudobeatnik/conceptual installation disaster that was the last half of the 20th century the way ahead is clear... it was there: the basic hermetic, logic-driven search for the most basic of elements... zeros and ones, and "male" and "female." shazaam! Duchamp's cool theories on winning at roulette at Monaco. He was a rich man! (probably from marrying well in that brief intersection of american and european lovefest, but that was a good calculation, too... reading about Duchamp, makes me wonder about whether he had any feelings, or not... at least, while he holed up "retired," working on his last great work of art, he was also married to a rather anonymous-- ie: not famous-- woman, for many years. A testament to a true, strange human being).
September 14, 2020
Este libro es una puerta de entrada al extraordinario proceso creativo de uno de los más grandes artistas del siglo XX. La capacidad que tuvo Marcel Duchamp de reinventarse una y otra vez a lo largo de su carrera es increíble. Los que solo le conozcan por el famoso urinario y los ready-mades pueden descubrir también aquí al Duchamp aficionado a los juegos de palabras (de los que LHOOQ es solo la punta de lanza) y, sobre todo, al artista intelectual y reflexivo, muy lejos de lo visceral, a través de las cientos de notas que fue escribiendo a lo largo de los años sobre, por ejemplo, El Gran Vidrio, su obra cumbre.
La transcripción de la entrevista de 1956 con James Johnson Sweeney no está completa pero el vídeo puede encontrarse fácilmente en YouTube y es emocionante ver a Duchamp hablando de su carrera y de sus obras.
La transcripción de la entrevista de 1956 con James Johnson Sweeney no está completa pero el vídeo puede encontrarse fácilmente en YouTube y es emocionante ver a Duchamp hablando de su carrera y de sus obras.
March 16, 2008
Reading about things like Duchamp's ideas behind "The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even" was probably a big stimulus for me at age 22. It seems like it wd've influenced my own sculpture "Frame of Reference" & an associated work "Policy Blueprint" but, maybe not, b/c it seems to me that I made them before I read this bk. Then again, I probably read Schwarz's huge bk on Duchamp before I made those pieces so we're back to Duchamp again. At any rate, Duchamp's love of puns & their capacity for resisting definition by being fluidly ALIVE as well as his Cabbalistic creation of complex structural underpinnings are both of central importance to me.
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June 17, 2009The Green Box material is great.
It's all great, but definitely is a nice adjunct to Tomkins's bio or other information.
It's all great, but definitely is a nice adjunct to Tomkins's bio or other information.
July 21, 2014
Like "Dialogues with Marcel Duchamp" this is a must-read for all students of 20th Century Art.
March 3, 2015
Duchamp's love of language is emphasized throughout his written works collected here: his puns, alliterations, anagrams, and writing under his alias, Rrose Selavy.
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