An abstract painting need in 50 years by no means look "abstract" any longer.
Marcel DuchampRead
I was never interested in looking at myself in an aesthetic mirror. My intention was always to get away from myself, though I knew perfectly well that I was using myself. Call it a little game between 'I' and 'me.'
Interpretation
What this quote means
Duchamp reflects on the complexity of self-identity and the playful nature of self-examination.
In this quote, Marcel Duchamp expresses his disinterest in superficial self-reflection, preferring instead a deeper exploration of identity through artistic practice. He recognizes the delicate interplay between his true self and the persona he presents, suggesting that this dynamic tension is akin to a game of introspection that goes beyond mere aesthetics.
Themes
Self-IdentityArtIntrospectionPhilosophyPersona
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on modern art, one might use this quote to illustrate the concept of self-exploration in artistic expression.
More from Marcel Duchamp
All quotes →All this twaddle, the existence of God, atheism, determinism, liberation, societies, death, etc., are pieces of a chess game called language, and they are amusing only if one does not preoccupy oneself with 'winning or losing this game of chess.
Marcel DuchampRead
I am still a victim of chess. It has all the beauty of art - and much more. It cannot be commercialized. Chess is much purer than art in its social position.
Marcel DuchampRead
I never finished the 'Large Glass' because, after working on it for eight years, I probably got interested in something else; also, I was tired. It may be that, subconsciously, I never intended to finish it because the word 'finish' implies an acceptance of traditional methods and all the paraphernalia that accompany them.
Marcel DuchampRead
It's a product of two poles - there's the pole of the one who makes the work, and the pole of the one who looks at it. I give the latter as much importance as the one who makes it.
Marcel DuchampRead
I became a librarian at the Sainte-Genevieve Library in Paris. I made this gesture to rid myself of a certain milieu, a certain attitude, to have a clean conscience, but also to make a living. I was twenty-five. I had been told that one must make a living, and I believed it.
Marcel DuchampRead
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I see my finished platinum print (in the viewfinder) in all its desired qualities, before my exposure.
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Every story I create, creates me. I write to create myself.
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We usually evaluate creative process in terms of how much feeling or thinking was behind the work or how well the work was done. Isn't there any other way of appreciating the process? What if the standard of excellence was how fully present the artist was during the process?
Kazuaki TanahashiRead