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MARCEL DUCHAMP (1887-1968) FOUNTAIN signed and dated "Marcel Duchamp 1964" in black paint on the...

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MARCEL DUCHAMP (1887-1968) FOUNTAIN signed and dated Marcel Duchamp 1964 in black paint on the...
MARCEL DUCHAMP (1887-1968) FOUNTAIN signed and dated "Marcel Duchamp 1964" in black paint on the bottom left; inscribed "R. MUTT 1917" in black paint on the front left side; inscribed "Marcel Duchamp 1964 exemple Arturo" and engraved "FOUNTAIN 1917 EDITION GALERIE SCHWARZ, MILAN" on a copper plate affixed to the underside glazed cast ceramic urinal with black paint 141/8 x 187/8 x 24 in. (36 x 48 x 61 cm) executed 1917-1964 The original work, produced in 1917, was lost; the present lot was produced under the artist's supervision from the Alfred Stieglitz photograph of the 1917 original; it is an artist's proof, dedicated to Arturo Schwarz, from an edition of eight plus one replica reserved for the artist and two replicas made for museum exhibition purposes. ESTIMATE: - $1,500,000-2,500,000 By far the most notorious of Duchamp's Readymades, Fountain was submitted to the inaugural exhibition of the New York Society of Independent Artists in April 1917. Although billed as an open, non-juried exhibition, several members of the society objected to the highly provocative sculpture, attempted to hide it from public view, and ultimately generated a succes de scandale for the artist. A common porcelain urinal purchased from a sanitary equipment store, Fountain was minimally transformed by simply tipping the object on its back. Duchamp proceeded to sign and date the urinal on its new base, using the pseudonym "R. Mutt" in punning reference to both the "Mott Works" plumbing manufacturer, and the popular cartoon characters "Mutt and Jeff." Shortly thereafter, a biting defense of the sculpture appeared in the pages of The Blind Man, and is believed to have been written by Duchamp himself. Here the artist provided one of the most eloquent explanations of Fountain, and the broader conceptual category of the Readymade. "What were the grounds for refusing Mr. Mutt's fountain: 1. Some contended it was immoral, vulgar. 2. Others, it was plagiarism, a plain piece of plumbing. Now Mr. Mutt's fountain is not immoral, that is absurd, no more than a bathtub is immoral. It is a fixture that you see every day in plumbers' show windows. Whether Mr. Mutt with his own hands made the fountain has no importance. He CHOSE it. He took an ordinary article of life, placed it so that its useful significance disappeared under the new title and point of view-and created a new thought for that object. As for plumbing, that is absurd. The only works of art America has given are her plumbing and her bridges." (A. Schwarz, The Complete Works of Marcel Duchamp, New York, 2000, p. 650.) PROVENANCE Dedicated by the artist to Arturo Schwarz, 1964 EXHIBITED NEW YORK, The Society of Independent Artists, FIRST EXHIBITION OF THE SOCIETY OF INDEPENDENT ARTISTS, April 10, 1917 (original; rejected from the exhibit) NEW YORK, Sidney Janis Gallery, CHALLENGE AND DEFY, September 25-October 21, 1950 (another example exhibited) NEW YORK, Sidney Janis Gallery, DADA, 1916-1923, April 15-May 9, 1953, no. 40 (another example exhibited) Zurich, Kunstgewerbemuseum, Dokumentation Über Marcel Duchamp, June 30-August 28, 1960, p. 34 (another example exhibited) STOCKHOLM, Galerie Burén, MARCEL DUCHAMP, March-April 1963 (another example exhibited) Pasadena, Pasadena Art Museum, MARCEL DUCHAMP, A RETROSPECTIVE EXHIBITION, October 8-November 3, 1963, no. 63 (another example exhibited) MILAN, Galleria Schwarz, OMAGGIO A MARCEL DUCHAMP, June 5-September 30, 1964 (another example illustrated) BERN, Kunsthalle, MARCEL DUCHAMP, WASSILY KANDINSKY, KASIMIR MALEVICH, October 23-November 29, 1964 (another example illustrated) LONDON, Gimpel Fils, MARCEL DUCHAMP, December 1964-January 1965 (another example illustrated) THE HAGUE, Gemeentemuseum and EINDHOVEN, Stedelijk van Abbemuseum, MARCEL DUCHAMP: SCHILDERN, TEKENINGEN, READY-MADES, DOCUMENTEN, February 3, 1964-March 15, 1964 (another example exhibited) HANNOVER, Kestner Gesellschaft, MARCEL DUCHAMP, MÊME, September 7-28, 1965 (another example illustrated) NEW YORK, Cordier & Ekstrom; HOUSTON, Museum of Fine Arts; BALTIMORE, Baltimore Museum of Art; WALTHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, Rose Art Museum; MILWAUKEE, Milwaukee Art Center, and MINNEAPOLIS, Walker Art Center, NOT SEEN AND/OR LESS SEEN OF/BY MARCEL DUCHAMP/RROSE SÉLAVY, 1904-1964: THE MARY SISLER COLLECTION, 1904-1964, 1965 (another example exhibited) WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND, National Art Gallery and Dominion Museum; CHRISTCHURCH, Robert McDougall Art Gallery; HOBART, TASMANIA, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery; MELBOURNE, National Gallery of Victoria; SYDNEY, Art Gallery of New South Wales; AUCKLAND, Auckland City Art Gallery; PERTH, Western Australia Art Gallery; BRISBANE, Queensland Art Gallery, and ADELAIDE, Art Gallery of South Australia, MARCEL DUCHAMP: THE MARY SISLER COLLECTION, 78 WORKS, 1904-1963, June 19, 1967- October 20, 1968, no. 63 (another example illustrated) LONDON, The Tate Gallery, THE ALMOST COMPLETE WORKS OF MARCEL DUCHAMP, June 18-July 31, 1966, p. 56, no. 126 (another example exhibited) MUNICH, Goethe-Institut, DADA 1916-1966, 1966, p. 61, no. 72 (another example exhibited) MILAN, Galleria Schwarz, MARCEL DUCHAMP: 66 CREATIVE YEARS, December 12, 1972-February 28, 1973, p. 33, no. 74 NAPLES, Palazzo Reale, THE DELICATE CHESS BOARD, MARCEL DUCHAMP: 1902-1968, June-July 1973, no. 73 (another example exhibited) PHILADELPHIA, Philadelphia Museum of Art; NEW YORK, The Museum of Modern Art; CHICAGO, The Art Institute of Chicago, MARCEL DUCHAMP, A RETROSPECTIVE EXHIBITION, September 22, 1973-April 21, 1974, p. 283, no. 120 (another example exhibited) BRUSSELS, Galerie Charles Kriwin, MARCEL DUCHAMP, October 1974, p. 19, no. 34 (another example exhibited) NAPLES, Studio Framart, SU MARCEL DUCHAMP, 1975-1976, p. 41 (another example exhibited) PARIS, Musée National d'Art Moderne, Centre national d'art et de Culture, Georges Pompidou, L'OEUVRE DE MARCEL DUCHAMP, January 31- May 2, 1977, p. 89, no. 110 (another example exhibited) VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Canada, The Vancouver Art Gallery, DUCHAMP READYMADES, April 29-June 4, 1978 (another example exhibited) OTTAWA, Alberta College of Art, MARCEL DUCHAMP: READYMADES, ETC., October 16-November 15, 1979, p. 37 (another example exhibited) BARCELONA, Fundación Joan Miro; MADRID, Caja de Pensiones; COLOGNE, Museum Ludwig, DUCHAMP, February-August 1984, pp. 180-181, no. 83 (another example exhibited) NEW YORK, Gallery Yves Arman; PARIS, Galerie Beaubourg; GENEVA, Galerie Bonnier, DUCHAMP PLAYS AND WINS, March 1984-April 1985, pl. XII (another example exhibited) UTRECHT, Museum Hedendaagse Kunst; RATINGEN, Stadtmuseum, MARCEL DUCHAMP ALS ZEITMASCHINE, September 19, 1987-January 3, 1988, p. 96 (another example exhibited) MILAN, Accademia di Belle Arti di Bretra, MARCEL DUCHAMP, LA SPOSA... E I READYMADE, May 20-July 10, 1988, p. 58, no. 59 (another example exhibited) HOUSTON, The Menil Foundation, MARCEL DUCHAMP: 'FOUNTAIN,' February 5-October 2, 1988, p. 12 (illustration of Stieglitz photograph), pp. 90, 137, 141 and 163, nos. 14, 19, and 25 (front and back cover illustrations; other examples exhibited) PARIS, Galerie Dina Vierny, MARCEL DUCHAMP ET SES FRÈRES, October-November 1988, p. 77 (another example exhibited) PARIS, Galerie Beaubourg and VENICE, Palazzo Grassi, M.A.J.Y. MAGIE, 1988, p. 20 (another example exhibited) ANTWERP, Galerie Ronny van de Velde, MARCEL DUCHAMP, September 15-December 15, 1991 (present lot exhibited) PARIS, Musée National d'Art Moderne, Centre national d'art et de Culture, Georges Pompidou, FÉMINIMASCULIN: LE SEXE DE L'ART, October 24, 1995-February 12, 1996, p. 76, ill. 12 (another example exhibited) NEW YORK, Whitney Museum of American Art, NEW YORK DADA, 1996, p. 90-91 (another example exhibited) ROME, Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna, MARCEL DUCHAMP ED ALTRI ICONOCLASTI, ANCHE, 1997, p. 44, no. 120 (another example exhibited) ONTARIO, Canada, National Gallery of Canada; CALGARY, Alberta, The Glenbow Museum; SACKVILLE, New Brunswick, The Owens Art Gallery; HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia; SHERBROOKE, Quebec, Galerie d'art du Centre Cultural de l'Université de Sherbrooke; WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Winnipeg Art Gallery; JONQUIÈRE, Quebec, Centre national d'exposition à Jonquière and WHITEHORSE, Yukon, Yukon Arts Centre, MARCEL DUCHAMP: DUSTBALLS & READYMADES, August 30, 1997-August 29, 1999 (another example exhibited) NEW YORK, Whitney Museum of American Art, THE AMERICAN CENTURY, ART AND CULTURE 1900-2000, PART I: 1900-1950, April 23-August 22, 1999, p. 116, fig. 205 (another example exhibited) NEW YORK, Achim Moeller Fine Art, MARCEL DUCHAMP: THE ART OF MAKING ART IN THE AGE OF MECHANICAL REPRODUCTION: AN EXHIBITION CATALOGUE, 1999-2000, p. 18, no. 5 (another example exhibited) WASHINGTON, DC, National Gallery of Art, ALFRED STIEGLITZ AND MODERN ART IN AMERICA, January 28-April 22, 2001 (another example exhibited) LITERATURE M. Duchamp, H. Pierre-Roché and B. Wood, eds., THE BLIND MAN, 1917 (another example illustrated) H. Janis and S. Janis, "Marcel Duchamp Anti Artist," VIEW 1, Series V, 1945, p. 23 (another example illustrated) R. Lebel, SUR MARCEL DUCHAMP, PARIS, 1959, pl. 80 (another example illustrated) W. C. Seitz, THE ART OF ASSEMBLAGE, NEW YORK, 1961, p. 47 (another example illustrated) W. Hopps, U. Linde and A. Schwarz, MARCEL DUCHAMP: READY-MADES, ETC. (1913-1964), MILAN, 1964, p. 14, no. 10 (another example illustrated) H. Richter, DADA ART AND ANTI-ART, LONDON, 1965, p. 80, fig. 36 (another example illustrated) C. Tompkins, THE WORLD OF MARCEL DUCHAMP, NEW YORK, 1966, p. 39 (another example illustrated) R. Lebel, "Crise de l'Object," ART AND ARTISTS 4, Vol. 1, July 1966, p. 18 (another example illustrated) W. S. Rubin, DADA & SURREALIST ART, NEW YORK 1968, p. 32, fig. 20 (another example illustrated) W. Hopps, "Chronological Notes," ART IN AMERICA, July/August 1969, vol. 59, p. 29 (another example illustrated) A. Schwarz, THE COMPLETE WORKS OF MARCEL DUCHAMP, LONDON, NEW YORK, 1969, (other examples illustrated, p. 466, no. 244d; pp. 300 and 465, pl. 111) W. Rainer-Wendt, READY-MADE, MEISENHEIM, 1970, p. 47, fig. 4 (another example illustrated) K. Coutts-Smith, DADA, LONDON, 1970, p. 56 (present lot illustrated) E. Peterson and M. Sanouillet, eds., SALT SELLER: THE WRITINGS OF MARCEL DUCHAMP, NEW YORK, 1973, p. 141 (another example illustrated) A. Schwarz, MARCEL DUCHAMP: GESTALTER UNSERER ZEIT, VIENNA, 1973, p. 25 (another example illustrated) K. Levin, "Duchamp a New York: Le Grand Oeuvre," DUCHAMP ET APRÈS (OPUS 49), PARIS, 1974, p. 53 A. Schwarz, MARCEL DUCHAMP, NEW YORK, 1975, pl. 111 (another example illustrated) D. Tashijan, SKYSCRAPER PRIMITIVES: DADA AND THE AMERICAN AVANT-GARDE, 1910-1925, MIDDELTON, ConnecticuT, 1975 (another example illustrated) A. Schwarz, ALMANACCO DADA: ANTOLOGIA LETTARIA-ARTISTICA CRONOLOGIA REPERTORIO DELLE RIVESTE, MILAN, 1976, p. 83 (another example illustrated) J. Clair, MARCEL DUCHAMP ET LA PHOTOGRAPHIE, PARIS, 1977, p. 67 (another example illustrated) D. Ades, DADA AND SURREALISM REVIEWED, ENGLAND, 1978, p. 67 (another example illustrated) R. Motherwell, THE DADA PAINTERS AND POETS, CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, 1981, p. 212 (another example illustrated) G. Picon, SURREALISTS AND SURREALISM, NEW YORK, 1983, p. 51, fig. 1 (another example illustrated) C. E. Adcock, MARCEL DUCHAMP'S NOTES FROM THE LARGE GLASS: AN N-DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS, ANN ARBOR, MI, 1983, fig. 85 (another example illustrated) T. Zaunschirm, BEREITES MÄDCHEN READYMADE, KLAGENFURT, 1983, p. 72, fig. 17 (another example illustrated) T. Zaunschirm, ROBERT MUSIL UND MARCEL DUCHAMP, KLAGENFURT, 1983 (other examples illustrated, figs. 55 and 175) P. Bürger, THEORY OF THE AVANT-GARDE, MINNEAPOLIS, 1984, p. 52 (another example illustrated) F. M. Naumann, THE MARTY AND WILLIAM SISLER COLLECTION, NEW YORK, 1984, p. 183, no. 66 and p. 184, fig. 1 (another example illustrated) J.-C. Bailly, DUCHAMP, NEW YORK 1986, p. 52 (another example illustrated) U. Linde, MARCEL DUCHAMP, STOCKHOLM, p. 163 (another example illustrated) D. H. Pilgrim, D. Tashjan and R. G. Wilson, THE MACHINE AGE IN AMERICA 1918-1941, NEW YORK 1986, p. 211, fig. 7.9 (another example illustrated) W. Camfield, "Marcel Duchamp's Fountain: Its History and Aesthetics in the Context of 1917," DADA/SURREALISM, IOWA CITY, 1987, p. 65, fig. 1 (another example illustrated) D. Daniels, ÜBRIGENS STERBEN IMMER DIE ANDEREN, COLOGNE, 1988, p. 84 (another example illustrated) G. Moure, MARCEL DUCHAMP, NEW YORK, 1988, fig. 86 (another example illustrated) E. Bonk, THE BOX IN A VALISE, MUNICH, 1989, p. 205 (another example illustrated) B. Wood, I SHOCK MYSELF, SAN FRANCISCO, 1988, p. 30 (another example illustrated) R. E. Kuenzli and F. M. Naumann, eds., MARCEL DUCHAMP: ARTIST OF THE CENTURY, 1989, CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (other examples illustrated, p. 65, fig. 1 and p. 80, fig. 7) T. de Duve, RESONANCES DU READYMADE, NÎMES, 1989, p. 89 (another example illustrated) M. Dachy, THE DADA MOVEMENT, NEW YORK, 1990, p. 82 (another example illustrated) A. Gopnick and K. Varnedoe, HIGH AND LOW: MODERN ART AND POPULAR CULTURE, NEW YORK, 1990, p. 276, fig. 81 (another example illustrated) A. Temkin, "Cumulus from America," PARKETT 23, ZURICH, 1990, p. 138 (another example illustrated) M. Partouche, MARCEL DUCHAMP: UNE VIE D'ARTISTE, MARSEILLE, 1991, p. 54 (another example illustrated) E. Abrahams, "Alfred Stieglitz's Faith and Vision," in A. Heller and L. Rudnick., eds., 1915, THE CULTURAL MOVEMENT, NEW BRUNSWICK, 1991, p. 193, fig. 57 (another example illustrated) E. Jaguer and J.-J. Lebel, AFTER DUCHAMP, PARIS, 1991, p. 31 (another example illustrated) W. Camfield, "Duchamp's Fountain: Aesthetic Object, Icon, or Anti-Art?" in T. de Duve, ed., THE DEFINITIVELY UNFINISHED MARCEL DUCHAMP, CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, 1991 (other examples illustrated, p. 135, fig. 4.1 and p. 162, fig. 4.22) T. de Duve, "Given the Richard Mutt Case," THE DEFINITIVELY UNFINISHED MARCEL DUCHAMP, CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, 1991, p. 205, fig. 8 (another example illustrated) M. Gibson, DUCHAMP DADA, PARIS, 1991, p. 219, fig. 281 (another example illustrated) J. Levy, "Duchampiana," in C. H. Ford, ed., VIEW: PARADE OF THE AVANT-GARDE, NEW YORK, 1991, p. 137 (another example illustrated) S. Watson, STRANGE BEDFELLOWS: THE FIRST AMERICAN AVANT-GARDE, NEW YORK, 1991, p. 318 (another example illustrated) H. M. Bachmayer, D. Kamper and F. Rötzer, eds., NACH DER DESTRUKTION DES ÄSTHETISCHEN SCHEINS: VAN GOGH, MALEVICH, DUCHAMP, MUNICH, 1992, p. 45 (another example illustrated) M. Cvach, DUCHAMP: PORTECHAPEAU, PARIS, 1992 (another example illustrated) D. Daniels, DUCHAMP UND DIE ANDEREN, COLOGNE, 1992, p. 180, fig. 46 (another example illustrated) M. Partouche, MARCEL DUCHAMP, MARSEILLE, 1992, p. 54 (another example illustrated) D. Waldman, COLLAGE, ASSEMBLAGE, AND THE FOUND OBJECT, NEW YORK, 1992, p. 139, fig. 191 (another example illustrated) A. Schwarz, "Marcel Duchamp: The Great Inspirer," CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW, no. 36, Summer 1996, p. 37 (another example illustrated) D. Waldman, COLLAGE, ASSEMBLAGE AND THE FOUND OBJECT, NEW YORK, 1992, p. 139, fig. 191 (another example illustrated) P. Hulten, ed., MARCEL DUCHAMP: WORK AND LIFE, CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, 1993, p. 64, fig. 5.6.1964 M. Calvesi, "Duchamp," ART ET DOSSIER, no. 78, 1993, p. 37 (another example illustrated) G. Borgna, ed., DADA: L'ARTE DELLA NEGAZIONE, ROME, 1994, p. 197, pl. III/12 (present lot illustrated) Z. Felix, ed., DAS JAHRHUNDERT DES MULTIPLE VON DUCHAMP BIS ZUR GEGENWART, HAMBURG, 1994, p. 20, fig. 2 (another example illustrated) F. M. Naumann, NEW YORK DADA, New York, 1994, p. 45 and p. 185 M. Sanouillet, ed., MARCEL DUCHAMP: DUCHAMP DU SIGNE, ÈCRITS, PARIS, 1994 (another example illustrated) J. Weiss, THE POPULAR CULTURE OF MODERN ART, NEW HAVEN, 1994, p. 124, fig. 61 (another example illustrated) B. Belic and Z. Gavric, MARCEL DUCHAMP, BELGRADE, 1995, p. 125, fig. 48 (another example illustrated) D. Judovitz, UNPACKING DUCHAMP: ART IN TRANSIT, BERKELEY, 1995, p. 125, fig. 48 (another example illustrated) J. Mink, DUCHAMP: ART AS ANTI-ART, COLOGNE, 1995, p. 66 (cover illustration) J. Siegal, THE PRIVATE WORLDS OF MARCEL DUCHAMP, BERKELEY, 1995, p. 138, fig. 45 (another example illustrated) J. M. Faerna, DUCHAMP, NEW YORK, 1996, p. 39, fig. 32 (another example illustrated) C. Tomkins, DUCHAMP: A BIOGRAPHY, NEW YORK, 1996, p. 183 (another example illustrated) J. Turner, ed., DICTIONARY OF ART, LONDON, 1996, Vol. 26, p. 51 (another example illustrated) P. Cabane, DUCHAMP & CO., PARIS, 1997, p. 111 (another example illustrated) M. Gale, DADA & SURREALISM, LONDON, 1997, p. 102, fig. 60 (another example illustrated) H. Molderings, MARCEL DUCHAMP, DuSSELDORF, 1997, p. 101 (another example illustrated) A. Schwarz, L'AVVENTURA SURREALISTA AMORE E RIVOLUZIONE, ANCHE, BOLSENA, 1997, p. 187, fig. 12 (another example illustrated) A. Schwarz, THE COMPLETE WORKS OF MARCEL DUCHAMP, NEW YORK, 1997, vol. 2 (other examples illustrated, p. 373, no. 345d, and pl. 125, p. 649) E. Nollmann and J. Tesch, eds., ICONS OF ART: THE 20TH CENTURY, NEW YORK, 1997, p. 54 (another example illustrated) T. Godfrey, CONCEPTUAL ART, LONDON, 1998, p. 8, fig. 2 (another example illustrated) D. Hopkins, MARCEL DUCHAMP AND MAX ERNST: THE BRIDGE SHARED, OXFORD, 1998, p. 73, fig. 39 J. A. Ramiréz, DUCHAMP LOVE AND DEATH, EVEN, LONDON, 1998, p. 53, fig. 40 (another example illustrated) B. Zabel, "The Constructed Self: Gender and Portraiture in Machine-Age America," in N. Sawelson-Gorse, ed., WOMEN IN DADA, CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, 1998, p. 34, fig. 2.3 (another example illustrated) D. Ades, N. Cox and D. Hopkins, MARCEL DUCHAMP, LONDON, 1999, p. 129, fig. 92 (another example illustrated) F. M. Naumann, THE ART OF MAKING ART IN THE AGE OF MECHANICAL REPRODUCTION, NEW YORK, 1999, p. 72, fig. 3.16; p. 73, fig. 3.19: p. 137, fig. 5.21; fig. 6.26; p. 226, fig. 8.27; p. 237, fig. 8.47; p. 245, fig. 8.68 and p. 246, fig. 8.69 (other examples illustrated) A. Schwarz, THE COMPLETE WORKS OF MARCEL DUCHAMP, NEW YORK, 2000, pp. 648-650, no. 345 (another example illustrated)
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