An artist chose a plain object.
It was a white bowl for a bathroom. He turned it to a new side. He called it art. This makes us think in new ways. Do you see art in your home?
An artist named Marcel Duchamp made a new kind of art.
He used a plain white bowl for a bathroom. He turned the bowl to a new side. He signed it with a fake name.
He called his work "Fountain." He wanted to show that choosing an object can be art. This was a big idea. Some people thought it was not art. They hid it during a big show.
Even though the first one is lost, people still talk about it. It changed how we think about art today.
In 1917, an artist named Marcel Duchamp made a famous work.
He did not paint it or carve it. Instead, he chose a plain white porcelain urinal.
He turned the object on its side. He signed it with the fake name "R. Mutt." He called the work "Fountain."
Duchamp wanted to share a big idea. He believed an artist's choice could make an object art. This is called a readymade.
He sent it to a big art show in New York. Some people there did not agree. They thought it was not art. They hid the piece behind a wall during the show.
Duchamp later left the group that ran the show. The original piece is now lost. However, people still talk about it today. It changed how we think about art. It moved the focus from how things are made to how we think about them. In the 1950s and 1960s, Duchamp had sixteen copies made. These copies help us see his work today.
In 1917, an artist named Marcel Duchamp changed how people think about art.
He introduced a new idea called a "readymade." This means an artist picks an everyday object and calls it art.
Duchamp believed the artist's choice was more important than physical craft. He wanted to move the focus toward intellectual ideas. This way of thinking was part of a new cultural movement in New York City. It was an anti-art movement known as Dada.
To make this specific work, Duchamp followed a few simple steps. He purchased a standard Bedfordshire model urinal from the J. L. Mott Iron Works.
He took the porcelain piece to his studio at 33 West 67th Street. Then, he turned the object 90 degrees from its usual position. He also wrote the name "R. Mutt 1917" on it. He chose the name Mutt because it sounded like the company Mott. He also liked the funny cartoon strip "Mutt and Jeff."
This famous piece was created during a very busy time for Duchamp. He had arrived in the United States less than two years earlier.
He worked with other artists like Francis Picabia and Man Ray. In early 1917, people even thought he was making a new painting. This painting was called "Tulip Hysteria Co-ordinating." However, that painting likely never existed at all. The urinal was his real contribution to the art world that year.
There is a lot of history behind the "Fountain" exhibition. Duchamp submitted it to the Society of Independent Artists in April 1917.
The show was supposed to be at the Grand Central Palace in New York. The committee did not reject the piece, but they did hide it. They placed it behind a partition so people could not see it. They said it was a useful object, but not art. This caused Duchamp to resign from the board of the society.
Even though the original urinal is now lost, its impact remains.
Many people still study the photograph taken by Alfred Stieglitz. In the 1950s and 1960s, Duchamp had sixteen replicas made. These replicas were made to his specific approval. Some people even wonder if a female friend helped him. One idea is that the artist Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven submitted it. Regardless, the work remains a major landmark in modern art history.
In 1917, Marcel Duchamp introduced a concept that challenged the very definition of art.
He created a work titled "Fountain," which consisted of a standard porcelain urinal. This object was a "readymade." A readymade is an everyday object that an artist chooses to become art. Duchamp believed the artist's act of choice was more important than physical craft. He wanted to shift the focus of art from making things to intellectual interpretation. This idea was a major landmark for 20th-century art.
The creation of "Fountain" followed a specific, intentional process. Duchamp purchased a Bedfordshire model urinal from the J. L. Mott Iron Works.
He brought the porcelain piece to his studio at 33 West 67th Street in New York. To change its function, he reoriented the object 90 degrees from its usual position. He also signed the piece with the pseudonym "R. Mutt 1917." This name was a play on the manufacturer, Mott Works. It also referenced the popular "Mutt and Jeff" cartoon strip.
"Fountain" was part of a larger cultural movement known as Dada. This was an anti-rational and anti-art movement in New York City. Duchamp worked alongside other artists like Francis Picabia and Man Ray. In early 1917, rumors even suggested he was preparing a Cubist painting titled "Tulip Hysteria Co-ordinating." However, that painting likely never actually existed. Instead, the urinal became his most significant contribution during this period. It helped define the proto-Dadaist spirit of the time.
The history of the work is tied to a controversial exhibition in April 1917.
Duchamp submitted the piece to the Society of Independent Artists. The exhibition was to be held at the Grand Central Palace. Although the Society's rules said all artists who paid a fee would be accepted, the committee did not display the work. They did not officially reject it, but they "suppressed" it. They placed the urinal behind a partition so visitors could not see it. The committee claimed it was a useful object, but not a work of art.
This suppression caused a significant reaction within the art community. Duchamp was a board member of the Society at the time. He resigned from the organization in protest after the incident.
The controversy was later discussed in the Dada journal "The Blind Man." This publication included a photograph of the piece taken by Alfred Stieglitz. The journal also featured writings by Beatrice Wood and Walter Arensberg. One editorial in the journal defended the work. It famously stated that the only works of art America had given were her plumbing and her bridges.
While the original porcelain urinal has been lost, the work lives on through other means.
During the 1950s and 1960s, Duchamp commissioned sixteen replicas. These replicas were made according to his specific approval. There is also a miniature version of the work in his "Boîte-en-valise." Some historians have even debated who actually submitted the piece. Some suggest it was the female artist Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven. However, most art historians maintain that Duchamp was solely responsible for the presentation.
Today, "Fountain" is studied as a bridge between different artistic ideas. It connects the physical world of industrial manufacturing to the abstract world of thought. It challenged the idea that art must be made by hand. By using a commercial product, Duchamp forced viewers to consider the meaning behind objects. This connection to mass production and conceptualism changed how we value creativity. It remains one of the most important examples of how an idea can transform a simple object into a masterpiece.
Where will your curiosity go next?
🖼️ Images & Media (9)
More to explore
✨ What else?
Related topics you might enjoy
🪜 Step back
Simpler topics to build understanding
What is Nepedia?
A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.