Process
Marcel Duchamp Nude Descending a Staircase no.2
"An explosion in a shingle factory" (Stamberg, 2013)
Duchamp's nude was inspired by time lapse photography.
When I first saw this painting in my A-Level art class, I was not quite sure what I was looking at. After being told to context of the painting, the nude came to life. The quick calculated gestures that shape the form add a level of movement. The notion of time is felt by the gradual illumination of the figure descending the canvas from left to right. Duchamp has captured the essence of the figure. The essence of what it means to walk down stairs. By minimizing colour duchamp has drawn the focus of the viewer to space. The painting has an ethereal nature, a transparency to the figure as geometric limbs overlap and merge with each other.
To me the concept of time has been removed. The passing of time deconstructed into a myriad of forms that can be tuned into at any moment. This represents the fourth dimension that I am trying to encompass in my painting.
Nude Descending a Staircase (No. 2), 1912
Marcel Duchamp,
Oil on canvas, 147 × 89.2 cm
Reference:
Stamberg, S. (2013). In 1913, A New York Armory Filled With Art Stunned The Nation. NPR.org. [online] 11 Nov. Available at: https://www.npr.org/2013/11/11/243732924/in-1913-a-new-york-armory-filled-with-art-stunned-the-nation?t=1643781091447 [Accessed 1 Feb. 2022].