Nude Descending a Staircase (No. 1)
Marcel Duchamp, American (born France), 1887 - 1968
Geography:
Made in France, Europe
Date:
1911Medium:
Oil on cardboard on panelDimensions:
37 3/4 x 23 3/4 inches (95.9 x 60.3 cm) Framed: 41 1/2 x 27 1/8 x 3 inches (105.4 x 68.9 x 7.6 cm)Copyright:
© Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris / Estate of Marcel DuchampCuratorial Department:
European PaintingObject Location:
1950-134-58Credit Line:
The Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection, 1950
Made in France, Europe
Date:
1911Medium:
Oil on cardboard on panelDimensions:
37 3/4 x 23 3/4 inches (95.9 x 60.3 cm) Framed: 41 1/2 x 27 1/8 x 3 inches (105.4 x 68.9 x 7.6 cm)Copyright:
© Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris / Estate of Marcel DuchampCuratorial Department:
European PaintingObject Location:
Currently not on view
Accession Number:1950-134-58Credit Line:
The Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection, 1950
Label:
Addressing what he later called “the problem of motion in painting,” Marcel Duchamp here repeats elements of the nude’s body in her final steps down a precipitous spiral staircase. This evocation of elapsed time in a static composition resonates with the Futurist works of Giacomo Balla, Gino Severini, and others. However, by 1911 Duchamp was closely involved with the circle of artists gathering regularly in the Paris suburb of Puteaux. Other artists who belonged to the Puteaux Group included Fernand Léger, Robert Delaunay, and Josef Csaky.
Addressing what he later called “the problem of motion in painting,” Marcel Duchamp here repeats elements of the nude’s body in her final steps down a precipitous spiral staircase. This evocation of elapsed time in a static composition resonates with the Futurist works of Giacomo Balla, Gino Severini, and others. However, by 1911 Duchamp was closely involved with the circle of artists gathering regularly in the Paris suburb of Puteaux. Other artists who belonged to the Puteaux Group included Fernand Léger, Robert Delaunay, and Josef Csaky.
