UNIVERSITY ART GALLERY

AVÀÇ, East Bay

ARCHIVES

2001-2002 EXHIBITIONS

  • MARCEL DUCHAMP: ARTIST- HUMORIST- PHILOSOPHERAnnual Faculty Exhibition
  • Annual Student Exhibition, judged by Moira Roth, Mills College 
  • Room for Reflection by Margorie Douglas--September 11th student show

2001-2002 PUBLICATIONS

  • MARCEL DUCHAMP:  ARTIST-HUMORIST-PHILOSOPHER Brochure by Lanier Graham [$5.00 donation]
  • DUCHAMP (IN-A-BOX):  A BOX-VALISE FULL OF GENUINE DUCHAMPIANA METICULOUSLY REPLICATED IN 2-D, 3-D, A-V, & CD, EVEN. Catalog edited by Lanier Graham[signed & numbered limited edition of 300/available for $200 from  ]
  • DUCHAMP & ANDROGYNY:  ART, GENDER, AND METAPHYSICSRelated book by Lanier Graham[signed & numbered limited edition of 1000/available for $100.00 from www.no-thingpress.com]

marcel duchamp.

Marcel Duchamp Festival

October 20, 2001 - February 20, 2002

University Art GalleryAVÀÇ, East Bay

The University Art Gallery is located in the Arts and Education Building

Gallery Hours: Wednesday through Saturday, Noon to 3 p.m.

  • For Gallery information 510-885-3299
  • For Festival & Media info. 510-885-4299
  • For other questions please email: duchamp01@hotmail.com

2001-2002 Exhibition Calendar

MARCEL DUCHAMP: 

Artist - Humorist - Philosopher And Related Work by Art Staff and Students

  • October 20, 2001 - February 20, 2002
  • Reception Friday October 19th, 5 to 7

Annual Faculty Exhibition

  • March - April 2002

Annual Juried Student Exhibition

  • May - June 2002

L.H.O.O.Q. 1919 (1941) from BOX IN A VALISE (1941)

  • Collection: The Norton Simon Museum, Pasadena.
  • Museum Purchase, 1963.

Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp

marcel duchamp

2000-2001 Exhibition Calendar

THE LION’S ROAR:

Tibetan tangkas from the Sakays

  • October 18, 2000 - November 29, 2000

Opening Reception:

  • Wednesday, October 18, 5 - 7 p.m.

THE ART OF THE BOOK:

Masterpieces from the Anderson Collection of Graphic Art at The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

  • January 17, 2001 - February 28, 2001

Opening Reception:

  • Wednesday, January 17, 5 - 7 p.m.

ANNUAL FACULTY EXHIBITION

  • March 28, 2001 - April 28, 2001

Opening Reception:

  • Wednesday, March 28, 5 - 7 p.m.

ANNUAL JURIED STUDENT EXHIBITION

  • May 16, 2001 - June 9, 2001

Awards Reception:

  • Wednesday, May 16, 5 - 7 p.m.

Awards Reception:

  • Wednesday, May 16, 5 - 7 p.m.

lions roar

1999-2000 Exhibition Calendar

THE ART OF THE BOOK

  • Part I. Modern Livres d'Artistes
    September 29 - October 28, 1999
  • Part II. Contemporary Artists' Books
    November 3 -December 2, 1999

ANDY WARHOL & SOCIAL CONSCIOUSNESS:

  • Another Side of Pop Art
    January 19- March 3, 2000

Annual Faculty Exhibition

  • March 29 - April 28, 2000

Annual Student Exhibition

  • May 17 - June 9, 2000

andy warhol book cover
Photo: Robert Mapplethorpe

GALLERY PUBLICATIONS

DUCHAMP IN A BOX

  • A "ready-made" Box-Valise
  • full of genuine Duchampiana
  • meticulously replicated in 2-D, 3-D, A-V, & CD, Even
  • edited by Lanier Graham, 2001 [catalogue/book]

THE LION'S ROAR

  • Tibetan Tangkas from the Sakyas
  • by Mark Levy, 2000 [catalogue]

THE LION'S ROAR

  • Tibetan Tangkas from the Sakyas
  • by Lanier Graham & Mark Levy, 2000 [brochure]

ANDY WARHOL & SOCIAL CONSCIOUSNESS

  • Another Side of Pop Art
  • by Lanier Graham, 2000 [brochure]

THE ART OF THE BOOK

  • Contemporary Artists Books
  • by Michael Henninger, 1999 [catalogue]

THE ART OF THE BOOK

  • The Modern Livre d'Artiste
  • by Lanier Graham, 1999 [catalogue]

LIFE, DEATH, & LAUGHTER

  • The Art of Masami Teraoka
  • by Lanier Graham, 1998 [catalogue]

WELCOME TO THE UNIVERSITY ART GALLERY!

I hope you will join us for the first survey of Marcel Duchamp's art ever presented in the San Francisco Bay Area. You will be able to see remarkable work by the man who is widely considered the "most influential artist of the 20th century." You also will be able to explore his profound message of Androgyny (true male/female balance).

Around our exhibition you can experience a university-wide Festival called "Duchamp & the Art of Life" which celebrates Duchamp's creative spirit in Book Arts, Dance, Theater, Music and Langauge Arts. There also will be a special symposium on October 20, 2001 with presentations by noted Bay Area authorities. See page 1 for details.

As Duchamp would say: ENJOY!

Lanier Graham
Director

 

bicycle wheelMarcel Duchamp
BICYCLE WHEEL, 1913
(later replica of his first "ready-made")

Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp.

Checklist of the Exhibition to come

Exhibition

Marcel Duchamp: Artist-Humorist-Philosopher

A survey of the extraordany work of the "most influential artist of the 20th Century," with an emphasis on his profound message of Androgyny (true male/female balance).

animated box that opens up and display art drawing

Marcel Duchamp French, 1887- 1968
BOITE-EN-VALISE, 1941-1942 (original 1938)
Cardboard box containing 68 miniature replicas and
reproductions Series D of 1961, Edition of 30, 16"h., 14-3/4" w., 3-1/2"d.
, Pasadena, CA, Museum Purchase, 1963 


Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp

DUCHAMP FESTIVAL

AVÀÇ, East Bay

Festival

Duchamp & The Art of Life

University wide celebration of Duchamp's spirit in Theatre, Music, Dance, Debate & Book Art.

Festival: MARCEL DUCHAMP AND THE ART OF LIFE

  • October 19, 2001 through February 2002

Gallery Exhibition: MARCEL DUCHAMP: 

Artist, Humorist, Philosopher

University Gallery
  • October 20, 2001 through February 20, 2002
  • Opening Reception: Hosted by Friends of the Arts
  • Friday evening, October 19, 2001 5 - 7 p.m.

Symposium: MARCEL DUCHAMP: Through the Ages

  • A Symposium of San Francisco Bay Area 
  • Art Historians and Critics hosted by Friends of the Arts
  • Saturday, October 20, 2001 1 to 5 p.m.
  • A & E Building, Rm. 1203 

Theatre: "UBU ROI" by Alfred Jarry 

  • Edgardo de la Cruz, Director
  • Fri. and Sat., Nov. 9, 10, 16, 17 at 8 p.m.
  • Sunday, Nov. 18 at 2 p.m.
  • Studio Theatre

Dance: "DANCHAMP," 

A Celebration of the Life and Art of Marcel Duchamp with featured guest artist Margaret Jenkins. 

Choreographed by CSUEB faculty Laura Renaud-Wilson, Nina Haft, Eric Kupers and Laura Ellis. Also featuring an original Duchampian dance on the theme of chess by Laura Renaud-Wilson.

Music: 

A musical experience featuring compositions by Marcel Duchamp and John Cage under the direction of Scott Gresham-Lancaster 

  • Friday, October 19, 5 - 7 p.m. University Gallery

Forensics: 

"Was Marcel Duchamp the most influential artist of the 20th Century?" Deborah Alexander, Director of Forensics and CSUEB debaters. 

  • November 1, 2001 2 - 4 p.m.
  • University Union 

Post Duchampian Works by CSUEB Staff and Art Students

  • October 20, 2001 through February 20, 2002

Festival and media information: 510-885-4299

General information email: duchamp01@hotmail.com

bicycle wheelMarcel Duchamp
BICYCLE WHEEL, 1913
(later replica of his first "ready-made")

Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp

Duchamp Through the Ages

Presentations by noted Bay Area authorities on Duchamp.  October 20, 2001

MARCEL DUCHAMP "Through the Ages" A Symposium of San Francisco Bay Area Art Historians & Critics


At AVÀÇ, East Bay
in the Art Education Building, Room #1203
Saturday, October 20, 2001
1 to 5 p.m.


In association with the CSUEB Exhibition
"Marcel Duchamp: Artist-Humorist-Philosopher"
(October 20, 2001 - February 20, 2002)
Hosted by FRIENDS OF THE ARTS


SPEAKERS

  • Kenneth Baker
    San Francisco Chronicle
    on Duchamp's Critical Reputation
  • Wanda Corn
    Stanford University
    on Duchamp & Early American Modernism
  • James Housefield
    Southwest Texas State University
    on Duchamp & Leonardo
  • Lanier Graham
    AVÀÇ, East Bay
    on Duchamp & Androgyny
  • James McManus
    AVÀÇ, Chico
    on Duchamp & Warhol
  • Moderator
    Moira Roth,
    Mills Collage

Admission is free.

For further information, call Diane Daniel

Credit Option:

1.5 units of academic credit will be available through AVÀÇ, East Bay for an additional fee of $48. If you are interested in this option, registration forms will be available at the conference registration table. Please request the form when you check in, complete it and return it to the registration table with your check or credit card information (Visa or MasterCard). Units will be awarded at the end of Fall Quarter 2001.

animated box that opens up and display art drawingMarcel Duchamp French, 1887- 1968
BOITE-EN-VALISE, 1941-1942 (original 1938)
Cardboard box containing 68 miniature replicas and reproductions Series D of 1961, Edition of 30, 16"h., 14-3/4" w., 3-1/2"d.
, Pasadena, CA, Museum Purchase, 1963

Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp

DUCHAMP in a BOX

A "ready-made" Box-Valise full of genuine Duchampiana meticulously replicated in 2-D, 3-D, A-V, and CD.

featuring

  • A Video overview of Duchamp's Work in His Own Words
  • Duchamp's ENTIRE MUSICAL WORKS on a CD
  • Postcards of L.H.O.O.Q and THE LARGE GLASS
  • A Puzzle of NUDE DESCENDING A STAIRCASE
  • A humorous Animation of THE LARGE GLASS
  • Some Scholarly Articles, Miscellaneous Notes
  • A miniature BICYCLE WHEEL
  • and a Black Silk Stocking

Edited by Lanier Graham

University Art Gallery

AVÀÇ

Hayward 2001

bicycle wheelMarcel Duchamp
BICYCLE WHEEL, 1913
(later replica of his first "ready-made")

Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp

Duchamp & Androgyny

The first book on Duchamp & his use of the symbol of Androgyny throughout his career.

DUCHAMP & ANDROGYNY Art, Gender, & Metaphysics

by Lanier Graham

WORLD ART PRESS

Brentwood

2002

rrose selavyRROSE SELAVY (Alias Marcel Duchamp). 1021. Photograph by Man Ray. Art Direction by Marcel Duchamp. Silver Print. 5-7/8" x 3"-7/8" Collection: Philadelphia Museum of Art. Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp

Duchamp News and Notes

CSUEB News Release May 2001

An exhibition of the work of MARCEL DUCHAMP is being presented for the first time in Northern California at the center of a Duchamp Festival at California State University, East Bay, October 20, 2001 - February 20, 2002. This is a rare opportunity to see the remarkable work of the "most influential artist of the century," and explore his profound message of Androgyny - true male/female balance.

For many years Picasso and Matisse were considered the most influential artists of the 20th century. That evaluation has changed. Now, Marcel Duchamp is widely considered the most influential artist of the 20th century. How he came to occupy this position is a long rich story much of which will be "told" in the CSUEB Art Gallery and celebrated around the campus in a festival of art, music, dance, & drama.

THE MAN & HIS ART 

According to Lanier Graham, the Gallery's Director, "Duchamp is often thought of as the 'Daddy of Dada', as it developed during World War I, and as the 'Grandpa of Pop', as Pop Art developed during the 1950s & '60s, as well as the 'Conceiver of Conceptual Art'. But he was a great deal more. With remarkable spontaneity and seemingly effortless ease, he put forth a lifelong series of revolutionary objects and attitudes including a remarkable nonattachment to fame or fortune. His modesty astonished everyone who knew him, while his fertile ideas have inspired countless artists. Duchamp's influence, which started during the period of Dada & Surrealism, continued to grow during the Abstract Expressionist era of Pollock and de Kooning and the Neo-Dada era of Johns and Rauschenberg. His influence continues to expand in the ever widening waves of Postmodernism today.

"He gave new status to artists by saying art is whatever the artist says isart, not what critics say art is. Many critics still hate him for that. In a world that had come to rely too much on reason, he emphasized the intuitive side of our brain by his explorations of chance and open-endedness, an open-endedness that said the viewer is the co-creator of every work of art. In short, he democratized art in a new way.

"Duchamp also was fascinated by science, especially electromagnetism. What electromagnetic energy is, and how it moves through our bodies and throughout the universe as a whole, occupied much of his thinking. Any number of his works bring together left-brain science with right-brain visualizations. In his famous work, "The Large Glass", the Bride and the Bachelors are divided and never touch, yet they are connected by "wireless" energy. He later used telephone lines to symbolize this flowing of love-energy back and forth, and reminded us that people, not communication systems, are the real 'media.'

"He grew tired of art that appeals only to the eye, and worked to elevate contemporary art above the merely visual and physical to the level of the metaphysical. His philosophical statements are among the most profound in the history of art. By using a good many words with his images, and by leaving meanings open-ended, he required that we think and feel at the same time. There was method to his madness. He based much of his work on the metaphysical ideal of Androgyny (true male-female balance) both in psychology and sociology. That earned him the rare respect of feminist art historians. Bringing together within ourselves the so-called 'male' capacity to be rational and the so-called 'female' capacity to be intuitive is the perennial goal of the great Wisdom Paths: Shamanism, Taoism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. This dynamic harmony is said to be the key to Enlightenment.

"Enlightenment became the supreme goal of Modern artists in their non-religious quest for wholeness, their secular search for the sacred. However, few were able to attain this ideal. Various kinds of self-centeredness got in the way. Duchamp was not without shortcomings and may not have attained total selflessness, but he seems to have come closer than most.

"In place of the usual (and often egocentric) insistence on self-expression, Duchamp pointed out that self-centeredness can be removed from the artistic process. In his 'ready-mades' (anonymous manufactured objects he selected and signed), he generated the idea of art-without-artists, and thus opened even further the opportunity for image-making to everyone. Selecting, he said, is a creative act. Moreover, by often replicating his earlier works, the concept of self moved even further away from the object and opened out toward the not-self. The unification of self and not-self is the ultimate aim of traditional metaphysical philosophy.

"However, he never lost respect for well-crafted quality. His every object was made with loving care, as were his relationships with others. Duchamp celebrated human nature in general and the erotic impulse in particular, advising above all loving and being loved. He also thought of the connection between art and life as a kind of oneness. And all along the way, he recommended laughter."

THE FESTIVAL: ART, MUSIC, DANCE, & DRAMA

The CSUEB Duchamp Festival, "MARCEL DUCHAMP & THE ART OF LIFE," based primarily on California collections and California scholarship, will include a wide variety of experiences that reflect the many sides of Duchamp. In the University Art Gallery "MARCEL DUCHAMP: ARTIST, HUMORIST, PHILOSPHER" will be a concise but comprehensive selection of his visual work on loan from major California museums such as the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, as well as from private collectors in the San Francisco Bay Area. This will be the first large-scale Duchamp exhibition in Northern California, and the most comprehensive Duchamp exhibition in California since his first museum retrospective in Pasadena in 1963.

The University Art Gallery also has organized a Symposium featuring recent Duchamp research by scholars from the San Francisco Bay Area. Included will be Wanda Corn, Professor of Art History at Stanford University, speaking on "Duchamp & Early American Modernism"; James Housefield, formerly of CSUEB and now at Southwest Texas State University, speaking on "Duchamp & Leonardo da Vinci"; and Lanier Graham, Director of the University Art Gallery at CSUEB, speaking on "Duchamp & Androgyny", a paper that will include parts of Graham's conversations with Duchamp when they played chess together in the 1960s. Aspects of the theme of Androgyny, which is central to understanding Duchamp's work as a whole, will be highlighted throughout the exhibition.

The exhibition catalogue is being being edited by Lanier Graham. He is well known in Duchamp circles for his book CHESS SETS (1968), which was assisted by Duchamp and dedicated to Duchamp, and for IMPOSSIBLE REALITIES: MARCEL DUCHAMP & THE SURREALIST TRADITION, the exhibition he curated in 1991 at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. He also has written a book called DUCHAMP & ANDROGYNY which will soon be published.

Plays, dances, and music were important to Duchamp, from his earliest years to his later years when he was involved with John Cage (who was strongly influenced by Duchamp's work), and Merce Cunningham whose dancers still dance around inflatable Duchampian objects which were designed by Jasper Johns after Duchamp's "Large Glass." Duchamp himself participated in a number of performance pieces. Some of those, captured on film, will be presented in the CSUEB Multimedia Gallery including Rene Clair's ENTR' ACTE, starring Duchamp and Man Ray, Hans Richter's 8 X 8 (A CHESS SONATA IN 8 MOVEMENTS), featuring Calder, Duchamp, Ernst, and Tanguy, as well as Jacqueline Matisse (Duchamp's stepdaughter), and MARCEL DUCHAMP: IN HIS OWN WORDS by Lewis Jacobs.

In celebration of these aspects of Duchamp's spirit, the CSUEB Department of Theater & Dance is performing one of Duchamp's favorite plays, UBU ROI, directed by Edgardo de la Cruz, and presenting a new Duchampian dance on the theme of chess, under the supervision of Laura Renaud-Wilson, who studied with Cunningham. Scot Gresham-Lancaster, who worked with John Cage, is planning to present 'music' by Duchamp. Forensics will conduct a debate on the topic of "Is Duchamp the most influential artist of the 20th century?" The University Library will present an exhibition of post-Duchampian artists books.

Duchamp authorities from coast to coast are praising the concept and contentof the CSUEB Festival, both for its breadth and its depth. Among those lookingforward to the festival are Bonnie Clearwater, editor of WEST COAST DUCHAMP, Linda D. Henderson of the University of Texas at Austin, author of DUCHAMP IN CONTEXT: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY IN THE "LARGE GLASS," Francis M. Naumann of New York, author of MARCEL DUCHAMP: THE ART OF MAKING ART IN THE AGE OF MECHANICAL REPRODUCTION, Moira Roth of Mills College in Oakland, author of DIFFERENCE/INDIFFERENCE: MUSINGS ON POSTMODERNISM, MARCEL DUCHAMP AND JOHN CAGE, Michael Taylor, Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, who is responsible for the most important collection of Duchamp's work.

Announcement of the Duchamp Festival is featured as a special December 2000 news item at  - THE MARCEL DUCHAMP STUDIES ONLINE JOURNAL, one of the most respected websites in the scholarly world. For further information, contact Diane Daniel, CLASS Publicist at (510) 885-3183, or diane.daniel@@csueastbay.edu

FEB. 1, 2001, PIONEER Newspaper CSU Gallery Preparing Marcel Duchamp Exhibit

By Marie SantosStaff Writer

Last year, AVÀÇ saw gallery director Lanier Graham accomplish the notable feat of securing the loan of outstanding works tomount an exhibit on the legendary Andy Warhol. This year, in the fall, Graham, at the suggestion of Arts Marketing Director Sylvia Medeiros, will present "Marcel Duchamp and the Art of Life," a festival celebrating one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. Duchamp, who is often referred to as the "Daddy of Dada" as well as the "conceiver of conceptual art," became famous after the 1913 exhibition of modern art in New York City. nAt this exhibit, Duchamp received notice for his nowlegendary painting, "Nude Descending a Staircase #2." Duchamp delighted others by creating art that was not only pleasing to the eye but thought-provoking as well. "He (Duchamp) forces you to examine that object in front of you," said David King, CSUEB assistant gallery director. "He exposes people to things that they might not be exposed to otherwise." According to Graham, Duchamp, who was noted for his modesty, simplicity and his avid love for playing chess, gave the world new ways of looking at "what art is" and lifted art "from the nearly visual to the philosophical." Duchamp inspired many artists, including Jackson Pollock and Willem De Kooning. Although his work motivated many artists to create art beyond the norm, Duchamp also stirred distaste from critics who objected to his way of thinking. "He gave new status to artists by saying art is whatever the artist says is art," said Graham, "not what critics say art is." By showing us the man behind the art, Graham hopes to introduce younger generations to the "magic and mystery of this man". Toni Borris, president of AVÀÇ's Friends of Arts, is excited about the festival, saying that Duchamp was a "unique character who didn't appeal to everybody, yet challenged people's imagination." The Warhol exhibit brought many visitors to the campus gallery, and the Duchamp exhibit is expected to do the same. According to Graham, it will be the first large-scale Duchamp exhibition in Northern California since 1963. In three years of preparation for the event, Graham has arranged to borrow Duchamp works from major museums such as the Norton Museum in Pasadena, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, as well as from private collectors in the San Francisco Bay Area. Along with a gallery exhibit of Duchamp's work, the festival willalso include performances by the CSUEB Department of Theatre and Dance, CSUEB musicians, and a presentation by the library of artists' books inspired by Duchamp.

JULY 5, 2001 PIONEER Duchamp Festival To Celebrate 'Art of Life'

By Amy DoanStaff Writer

"Warm, wonderful and wise" is how University Art Gallery Lanier Graham remembers Marcel Duchamp, the focus of next fall's "Marcel Duchamp and the Art of Life" festival. Duchamp, a French artist who died in 1968 at the age of 81, "gave new status to artists by saying art is whatever the artist says is art, not what critics say art is," said Graham. As a former curator at New York's Museum of Modern Art, Graham met Duchamp in the late 1960s. "I was writing a book about chess sets," he recalls. "I knew thatm Duchamp's fellow artists designed chess sets." The two were introduced by MOMA's founding director, Alfred Barr, and Graham was immediately impressed by the artist. "He was this big artist, and I was a young kid," he said. "He was a beautiful human being. "Lots of influential artists aren't beautiful human beings. Picasso,for instance, was a schmuck and a nasty guy." Graham dedicated his book, "Chess Sets," to Duchamp in 1968. "Duchamp was generous, supportive, gentle, and encouraged everyone to be more creative, loving and funny," Graham said. "He was always cracking jokes and full of kindness, but never forced himself on anybody.

"His work is fascinating and contains metaphors for very importantphilosophical ideas about reality and being alive. "It was the combination of all those things that make him important to me. And no other artist stimulates so much interest from my art history students." Duchamp was an extremely diverse artist, dabbling in painting, poetry, drama and dance. He is best known for his 1912 painting, "Nude Descending a Staircase," but stopped painting early in his career. "His artwork became more esoteric and complex," said Sylvia Medeiros, AVÀÇ's arts marketing coordinator. "He moved away from the concept of painting and sculptures as being art." In 1917, Duchamp entered a signed urinal in a juried exhibition called "The Independent" which sought unique views on art. The entry was rejected. "The Duchamp Festival" will celebrate the totality of his artistic interests and depth," said Graham. 

Graham spent several years applying for grants from foundations and individuals and asking curators from around the country to lend pieces for the exhibit. Some of Duchamp's most famous works will be on display in the University Art Gallery in an exhibition entitled "Marcel Duchamp: Artist, Humorist, Philosopher." The University's Department of Theater and Dance will produce "UBU ROI," Duchamp's favorite play. The Department of Music will perform compositions by Duchamp and John Cage, accompanying chess themed Duchampian dance. A Symposium will feature Duchamp scholars from the Bay Area. Included will be Wanda Corn, professor of Art History at Stanford University; James Housefield of Southwest Texas State University and formerly of CSUEB; James McManus, professor of Art History at Cal State Chico; and Kenneth Baker, chief art critic of the San Francisco Chronicle. 

Graham will also be a featured speaker, discussing themes from his soon-to-be-complete book, "Duchamp and Androgyny." The book, which Graham has been working on for the past 30 years, is based on conversations he had with Duchamp during their chess games According to Graham, Duchamp saw androgyny as "the ideal of psychological wholeness. It refers to a high state of consciousness in which a person has integrated the male capacity to be rational and the female capacity to be intuitive. It has nothing to do with sexuality." Graham noted that Duchamp's famous "Mona Lisa with a Mustache" is a humorous example of androgyny. "Enlightenment is sometimes considered being able to balance the male and female traits," he added.

A forensics team will debate the question, "Is Marcel Duchamp the mostinfluential artist of the 20th century?" Kirk LeClaire's Creative Process students for the fall quarter will submit work for a student exhibition on the theme of chess. "I think it's really wonderful that all the art departments are collaborating on this," said Graham. "I hope we can continue to do more of that." 

The Duchamp Festival opens with a reception hosted by Friends of the Arts on Friday, Oct. 19, from 5 to 7 p.m. in the University Art Gallery. The exhibition will run from Oct. 20, 2001, through Feb. 20, 2002. Persons wishing more information may call (510) 885-3299.

bicycle wheelMarcel Duchamp BICYCLE WHEEL, 1913(later replica of his first "ready-made")Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp

Links

Nude Decending a Staircase, No. 2, 1912. Oil a Canvas.
Philadlphia Museum of Art.
Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection, 1950.
Duchamp's Works copyright 2001 Artists Rights Society (ARS),
New York/ADAGP, Paris, Estate of Marcel Duchamp