As THE THIRD quarter of the twentieth century draws to a close, it becomes increasingly clear how profoundly the elusive life and art of Marcel Duchamp have influenced the development of modern art. Duchamp was one of those rare great artists who possess the ability to foreshadow the future. Ever since 1913, when his Nude Descending a Staircase created a sensation at the Armory Show in New York, his prophetic vision has elicited a wide range of emotions, challenging traditional attitudes and aesthetic conventions. It is impossible to view the art of the post-World War Il era without recognizing the impact of Duchamp on the younger generation of artists.
However, widespread recognition of Duchamp as one of the major twentieth-century artists is a relatively recent occurrence. The first comprehensive retrospective exhibition, deftly titled "By or of Marcel Duchamp or Rrose Selavy," was organized by Walter Hopps in 1963 at the Pasadena Art Museum. Three years later, Richard Hamilton assembled "The Almost Complete Works of Marcel Duchamp" under the aegis of the Arts Council of Great Britain at the Tate Gallery in London. By the time of Duchamp's death in 1968, his achievements were appreciated by a wider public, and, more significantly, by a younger generation of artists who now acknowledged him as a major figure in their thinking. The present exhibition comes at a moment in history when we may begin to gauge his contribution to twentieth-century art.