Marcel Duchamp

Julien Levy, New York (acquired from the artist in 1937)      

Estate of Julien Levy, Newtown, Connecticut

Acquired from the above by the present owner

Ecke Bonk, Marcel Duchamp, The Box in a Valise, de ou par Marcel Duchamp ou Rrose Sélavy, New York, 1989

Francis M. Naumann, Marcel Duchamp, The Art of Making Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, New York, 2000, p. 135 (another example illustrated in colour, fig. 5.20)

Arturo Schwarz, The Complete Works of Marcel Duchamp, New York, 2000, vol. I, no. 458, another example illustrated p. 745

The card is hinged to the mount at all four corners. The support is a little time-worn, and the colours are a slightly faded. This work is in very good, original condition. Colours: Overall fairly accurate in the printed catalogue illustration, although slightly fresher and less warm in the original.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In 1912 Marcel Duchamp executed his most radical and significant early work. Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2, a kaleidoscopic exploration of movement painted in a Cubo-Futurist style, was supposed to be exhibited in the year of its execution at the Salon des Indépendants in Paris, but its literary title and unconventional approach to Cubism led Duchamp to withdraw the work from the show after receiving critical comments from Albert Gleizes and other ‘hard-line’ Cubists. The following year Duchamp submitted the painting to the now-famous 1913 International Exhibition of Modern Art - known as the Armory show - in New York, where it caused a sensation. Lampooned by the critics but admired by a number of influential collectors, Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2 established Duchamp at the forefront of the avant-garde.

By 1937 painting had long ceased to be a part of Duchamp’s artistic practice and his incisive and experimental ready-mades and subversive objects had transformed the way in which the creation of art was determined. However, during the summer of 1937 Duchamp was prompted to create a miniature retrospective in the form of pochoir reproductions housed in a Boîte-en-Valise. The expense of commissioning the carefully prepared stencils and skilled hand-colouring led Duchamp to consider publishing an edition of 250 reproductions of each of the five chosen works. In the event, only Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2 and The Bride were printed, and in such small editions that the exact number of prints are unknown. The question of authenticity and originality had long played a part in his conceptual works, and Duchamp brought these ideas to bear on the pochoir reproductions. Standard practice in France when authenticating legal documents - of which Duchamp was well aware due to his father’s position as the notary of Blainville-Crevon – was for the lawyer to apply a small-denomination postage stamp to the document and sign his name across it. This resourceful method of preventing falsified documentation was carried out by Duchamp on each of the pochoir and distinguishes them as original and authentic works by the artist.