Philadelphia Museum of Art
Marcel Duchamp
50 cc of Paris Air
1919
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Marcel Duchamp
50 cc of Paris Air
1919
Glass ampoule (broken and later restored)
Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection, 1950
1950-134-78
Artist/maker
Marcel Duchamp
INFORMATIONS
Duchamp purchased this "empty" ampoule from a pharmacist in Paris as a souvenir for his close friend and patron, Walter C. Arensberg. A vial with nothing in it may be the most insubstantial "work of art" imaginable. From a molecular point of view, air is not considered nothing, but when displayed so carefully in an art museum it seems to be less than one might expect. Its precise meaning was rendered even more unstable in 1949, when the ampoule was accidentally broken and repaired, thus begging the question: Is the air even from Paris anymore?

Dimensions

Height: 5 1/4 inches (13.3 cm) Diameter: 2 11/16 inches (6.8 cm)

Type de document

Emplacement

Made in Paris, France
CRÉDITS PHOTOGRAPHIQUES ET DROITS
© Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris / Association Marcel Duchamp

INFORMATIONS
ADMINISTRATIVES

ID du système source

51617