Marcel Duchamp - Fountain

Marcel Duchamp’s Fountain is a very intriguing piece of artwork that we have looked at in class. Taken a first glance, it appears to simply be a urinal, but when looked at closely it can bring a variety of meanings and emotions a viewer. He had taken such an unusual everyday object out of its everyday environment and made it into an art piece.

Duchamp created the piece in 1917 after purchasing the urinal. He positioned it so it would lie flat, which is a way people do not regularly encounter urinals. This kind of art from is called a “readymade”. This means that he didn’t actually create the urinal itself; he simply chose it to be his piece. What people see when they look at this piece is entirely up to the viewer. Some people will look at it and take it simply as it appears, a urinal. Some people may see it as a way of Marcel Duchamp poking fun at the world of art. He may have done this to show that anything could be considered art. After researching Duchamp’s background, I saw that he was part of an anti-art cultural movement in New York City. He could have done this perhaps in a joking manner. Other people look at this piece and see more than just a urinal. Since the piece is lying on its side, the curved edges and top resemble a picture of a woman with a veiled head. Others find beauty in the curves of the porcelain. Another interesting aspect of this piece is that he signed it R. Mutt. There have been many questions as to why he did this. Was he trying to hide his identity? Is R. Mutt a real person? What exactly is the meaning of writing R. Mutt? This is just another interesting twist on an interesting piece.

Whatever Marcel Duchamp’s reasoning for this piece is, he has definitely stirred up controversy. There have been many interpretations and arguments over what is to taken away from this piece, and that is exactly what makes it art. People will always be talking about what the piece means or why it was done in the first place. There is no absolute answer and this artwork facilitates conversation and questioning. Why did he choose a urinal? Does it symbolize something? In my opinion, he just took an object that he felt was the furthest from what someone would consider art, and sent it to an exhibit. The fact that so many people have found different position to take on his artwork and feel so strongly about it, is precisely what makes this art.