Spotlight on Marcel Duchamp with Dr. Timea Andrea Lelik

Our spotlight on Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) examines the life and legacy of one of the twentieth century's most innovative and original artists. Through a comprehensive but accessible introduction to the artist's oeuvre, we will explore Duchamp’s role and contribution to modern art history. While analyzing autobiographical information better to grasp the inspiration sources of this complex artist, we will proceed to an in-depth analysis of his most iconic works discussing his seminal influence on the development of conceptual art.

Post-Impressionist aesthetics influenced his early figurative paintings, but in 1911 he developed his own style of cubism by mixing mechanical and visceral shapes with a movement representation that was equally influenced by Futurism and Cubism. After 1912, Duchamp painted relatively little, producing his first "readymades" in 1913, including "Bicycle Wheel" and "Fountain."

As Duchamp undermined normal and accepted ways of artistic production using sarcasm and satire, the idea of the readymade began to be seen as an attack on conventional understandings of the nature and position of art. He famously renounced art-making in the 1920s and spent the rest of his life playing chess, yet he never totally retired from his position as an artist-provocateur. In this seminar, we will examine Duchamp’s association with many artistic movements, from Cubism to Dada to Surrealism, and how he paved the way for later styles such as Pop Art, Minimalism, and Conceptualism.

Led by an expert on modern and contemporary art and published author, Dr. Timea Andrea Lelik, this interactive seminar will explore the contribution of this great artist to the history of art. Designed to inform curiosity as well as future travels, participants will come away with an increased appreciation and understanding of the role and contributions of an artist who helped to define revolutionary developments in visual arts at the beginning of the twentieth century.

This seminar is part of an extended series, each event spotlighting a different artist. For additional details, click here.