Marcel Duchamp invented everything, basically. Forerunner to Warhol, great grand-pere of Jeff Koons and Damian Hirst and any other conceptualist you can think of, he stopped painting early in his career and worked/tinkered forever on his Large Glass (a picture of a chocolate grinder in sort-of gold leaf on glass, also called The Bride Stripped Bare By her Bachelors, Even), displayed ready-made, storebought objects like snowshovels and urinals as "sculpture" [hello, Jeff!], and generally was about 11,000 times smarter/funnier than anyone we'll ever meet.
What I wanted to comment on, however, is the funny-money he made for a Monte Carlo night type thing he did in the 20's. I forget what happened, everyone got to win, or came out exactly even, or something...I don't have the necessary texts here. I just want to say: check the actual money. This is the 20's, yes, surrealists coming on, etc, but what the hell???
"I know! I will make myself a beard and horns with shaving-soap foam, take a photo and put that on the five-franc certificates! Of COURSE!"
And THIS was pre-psychedelics by many, many moons. Shit hot!
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