Fountain c. 1917 - 1964

Curator: Well, hello there. Standing before us, we have Marcel Duchamp's "Fountain." What a trickster he was! Editor: My first thought? It's unsettling, yet pristine. That gleaming white porcelain...it’s so stark, it feels almost aggressive. Curator: Aggressive, hmm? I read the choice of a urinal as more of a mischievous gesture against the established art world of his time. He was questioning...what is art, anyway? Editor: Oh, it's defiant, no doubt. But it also taps into primal associations with the body, with shame, with the unseen. The placement of those holes...it’s loaded. Curator: True, the object itself is imbued with meaning, but the act of choosing, of re-contextualizing, that's the art, isn't it? That's the alchemy. It makes me feel a little uncomfortable, and maybe that's the point. Editor: Exactly. And the signature, "R. Mutt," adds another layer. Is it him? Is it not? It's a riddle wrapped in porcelain. Even now, it makes you rethink what you expect from art. Curator: It certainly does. It makes you think about the purpose of things, and ultimately about the purpose of art.