Learning Specialist, Emma Waldman: When people take a look at this shovel hanging from the ceiling, the first thought that comes to their mind is, why is this considered art? Which is valid because it is just a shovel. But that was entirely the point. Here’s the artist’s own words.
Artist, Marcel Duchamp: My idea was to choose an object that wouldn’t attract me either by its beauty or by its ugliness.
Emma Waldman: Marcel Duchamp was a French-American artist who started his career as a painter, but then he started to transition away from art that is pleasing or beautiful, because he really believed that art wasn't about that.
Curator, Ann Temkin: What Duchamp himself referred to as probably his most important contribution is the making of Readymades.
Curator, Michelle Kuo: The word readymade is what it says it is. The work of art can be something that is already made, and actually what you're doing as an artist is to select.
Curator, Ann Temkin: But a hundred years ago, the idea was that if you were an artist, you used your hands, and Duchamp's giant move was to say: An artist matters because they have a good idea, they have a new idea, not because they were technically skilled.
Emma Waldman: One of the reasons I wanted to show you this artwork is that it's a different way to think about identity. Duchamp's personality really shines through. He was intelligent and smart, but he was also very humorous and he loved laughter and he was sarcastic, which we can see really, in the titles of his artworks. The title of this specific piece is In Advance of the Broken Arm because this is a snow shovel, and if you didn't have access to a snow shovel, you might slip and fall and break your arm.
If you were to make a work of art inspired by your personality, what characteristics would you highlight? Is there an object that you would choose to showcase your personality?