{"id":2119,"date":"2019-06-19T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-06-19T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/2013\/09\/03\/when-duchamp-asked-his-sister-for-a-ready-made\/"},"modified":"2020-11-25T14:15:31","modified_gmt":"2020-11-25T13:15:31","slug":"marcel-duchamp-lettera-che-piega-il-ready-made","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/2019\/06\/19\/marcel-duchamp-lettera-che-piega-il-ready-made\/","title":{"rendered":"When Marcel Duchamp explained how a ready-made is to be made"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t\t<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 {\n\t\t\t\tmargin: auto;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-item {\n\t\t\t\tfloat: left;\n\t\t\t\tmargin-top: 10px;\n\t\t\t\ttext-align: center;\n\t\t\t\twidth: 33%;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 img {\n\t\t\t\tborder: 2px solid #cfcfcf;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-caption {\n\t\t\t\tmargin-left: 0;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\/* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes\/media.php *\/\n\t\t<\/style>\n\t\t<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-2119 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/2019\/06\/19\/marcel-duchamp-lettera-che-piega-il-ready-made\/attachment\/2120\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"122\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/CFA-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/tumblr_msk1rdyM0d1spa6oao1_1280.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"marcel duchamp ready made\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-2120\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-2120'>\n\t\t\t\tMarcel Duchamp, letter to Suzanne Duchamp, 16th January 2019, front. Courtesy of Archive of American Art.\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/2019\/06\/19\/marcel-duchamp-lettera-che-piega-il-ready-made\/attachment\/2121\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"122\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/CFA-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/tumblr_msk1rdyM0d1spa6oao2_1280.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"marcel duchamp ready made\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-2121\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-2121'>\n\t\t\t\tMarcel Duchamp, letter to Suzanne Duchamp, 16th January 2019, back. Courtesy of Archive of American Art.\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl>\n\t\t\t<br style='clear: both' \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">&#8212;<\/p>\n<p>Everybody knows what Marcel Duchamp&#8217;s \u201cready made\u201d is in art, but who has ever read the original document where this extraordinary aesthetic discovery was explained for the very first time by its author himself? So, enjoy our transcription and english translation of the letter the artist wrote to his sister Suzanne on January the 16th in 1916, keeping in mind that this document is available and shareable on-line at the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aaa.si.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Archives of American Art, here is the link<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>Marcel Duchamp, letter to Suzanne Duchamp, 16th January 2019 (French).<\/h3>\n<p>15 janvier environ.<\/p>\n<p>[\u2026]<\/p>\n<p>Merci \u00e9norm\u00e9ment pour t\u2019occuper de toutes mes affaires.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; mais pourquoi n\u2019aurais tu pas pris mon<\/p>\n<p>atelier pour habiter&nbsp;?? J\u2019y pense juste maintenant<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; mais je pense que peut-etre \u00e7a ne t\u2019irait pas.<\/p>\n<p>En tous cas, le bail finit 15 juillet et si tu<\/p>\n<p>reprenais, ne le fais qu\u2019en proposant \u00e0<\/p>\n<p>mon proprio de louer 3 mois par 3 mois, comme<\/p>\n<p>cela se passe ordinairement, il acceptera<\/p>\n<p>surement. Peut etre p\u00e8re ne serait pas m\u00e9content<\/p>\n<p>de regagner un terme si c\u2019est possible que tu<\/p>\n<p>quittes la Condamine pour 15 avril. But<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t know anything about your<\/p>\n<p>intentions and je ne veux que te<\/p>\n<p>suggerer quelquechose.<\/p>\n<p>Maintenant si tu es mont\u00e9e chez moi tu as vu<\/p>\n<p>dans l\u2019atelier une roue de bicyclette et un<\/p>\n<p>porte bouteilles. J\u2019avais achet\u00e9 cela comme<\/p>\n<p>une sculpture toute faite. Et j\u2019ai une intention<\/p>\n<p>\u00e0 propos de ce dit porte bouteille: Ecoute.<\/p>\n<p>Ici, \u00e0 N.Y., j\u2019ai achet\u00e9 des objets<\/p>\n<p>dans le m\u00eame gout et je les traite comme<\/p>\n<p>des \u201creadymade\u201d tu sais assez d\u2019anglais<\/p>\n<p>pour comprendre le sens de \u201ctout-fait\u201d<\/p>\n<p>que je donne \u00e0 ces objets. Je les signe<\/p>\n<p>et je leur donne une inscription en<\/p>\n<p>anglais. Je te donne qques exemples:<\/p>\n<p>j\u2019ai par esemple une grande pelle \u00e0 neige<\/p>\n<p>sur laquelle j\u2019ai inscrit en bas: In advance<\/p>\n<p>of the broken arm. Traduction fran\u00e7aise: En<\/p>\n<p>avance du bras cass\u00e9. Ne t\u2019escrimes<\/p>\n<p>pas trop \u00e0 comprendre dans le sens<\/p>\n<p>romantique ou impressioniste ou cubiste.<\/p>\n<p>\u2013 Cela n\u2019a aucun rapport avec;<\/p>\n<p>Un autre \u201creadymade\u201d s\u2019appelle \u201cEmergency<\/p>\n<p>in favor of twice\u201d. traduction fran\u00e7aise<\/p>\n<p>possible: Danger (crise) en faveur de 2 fois.<\/p>\n<p>Tout ce pr\u00e9ambule pour te dire:<\/p>\n<p>Prends pour toi ce porte bouteille. J\u2019en fais<\/p>\n<p>un \u201cReadymade\u201d \u00e0 distance. Tu inscriras en<\/p>\n<p>bas et \u00e0 l\u2019int\u00e9rieur du cercle du bas en petites lettres<\/p>\n<p>peintes avec un pinceau \u00e0 l\u2019hile en couleur<\/p>\n<p>blanc d\u2019argent la inscription que je vais<\/p>\n<p>te donner ci apr\u00e8s. et tu signeras de la<\/p>\n<p>m\u00eame \u00e9criture comme suit:<\/p>\n<p>[d\u2019apr\u00e8s] Marcel Duchamp.<\/p>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3>Marcel Duchamp, letter to Suzanne Duchamp, 16th January 2019 (English).<\/h3>\n<p>Around January, 15th<br \/>\n[\u2026]<\/p>\n<p>Thank you so much for taking care of all my matters,<\/p>\n<p>why haven\u2019t you moved into my atelier?? I\u2019ve just thought about it,<\/p>\n<p>but maybe it wouldn\u2019t suit you. Anyway, the contract expires on july, 15th and in case you<\/p>\n<p>want it, you could suggest<\/p>\n<p>my owner to rent it for three months in three months, how<\/p>\n<p>it is generally done, and he will certainly accept it. Perhaps \u2026 he would be glad<\/p>\n<p>to claw back a rent-term if you manage<\/p>\n<p>to leave Condamine street by April, 15th. But<\/p>\n<p>I am not aware of your plans<\/p>\n<p>and I don\u2019t want to give you any suggestions.<\/p>\n<p>Now, If you came up to mine, you should see a bicycle wheel and a<\/p>\n<p>bottle carrier. I had bought it as<\/p>\n<p>an already-made sculpture. And this is my plan<\/p>\n<p>about this bottle carrier: Listen.<\/p>\n<p>Here, in N.Y., I have bought some objects<\/p>\n<p>of similar taste and I will treat them<\/p>\n<p>as \u201creadymade\u201d, your english is good enough<\/p>\n<p>to grasp the meaning of \u201calready-made\u201d<\/p>\n<p>which I confer to these objects. I sign them<\/p>\n<p>and I then apply an english inscription.<\/p>\n<p>Let me give you some examples:<\/p>\n<p>En avance du bras cass\u00e9.<\/p>\n<p>I have, for instance, a snow shovel, on the bottom of which<\/p>\n<p>I inscribed: in advance of the broken arm. French translation:<br \/>\nDon\u2019t force yourself<\/p>\n<p>to interpret them in a romantic or impressionist or cubist way for that matter.<\/p>\n<p>This doesn\u2019t have any relationship with them;<\/p>\n<p>another \u201creadymade\u201d is called \u201cEmergency in favor of twice\u201d. Possible french translation:<\/p>\n<p>Danger (crise) en faveur de 2 fois.<br \/>\nThis very preface simply to tell you: take with you the bottle carrier. I will do<\/p>\n<p>a distant \u201creadymade.\u201d You shall inscribe<\/p>\n<p>at the inside bottom of the circle with small letters<\/p>\n<p>painted with an oil-brush,<\/p>\n<p>white and silver colored, the inscription I\u2019m writing<\/p>\n<p>here below and you shall sign it with<\/p>\n<p>the same writing as follows:<\/p>\n<p>[d\u2019apres] Marcel Duchamp.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here is a transcription and English version of the letter by which Marcel Duchamp founded the &#8216;ready-made&#8217; practice. It all started as a gift to his sister Suzanne.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8374,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2385],"tags":[1207],"class_list":["post-2119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-gallery","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-art-history","tag-marcel-duchamp","post_format-post-format-gallery"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2119"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2119\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8374"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conceptualfinearts.com\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}