Transcription and Mirror Image of Artworks

2025/04/24

This work is a poster of Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968), one of the leading artists of the 20th century, holding a replica (glass plate) of his own work. It is elaborately made by screenprinting, applying silver foil to create the iconography, and then laminating it with transparent film.

Richard Hamilton (1922-2011), who produced this poster, was born in Britain and is considered one of the leading figures of Pop Art. On the other hand, he is also known for studying Duchamp and producing replicas of his works. The primary example is the replica of the glass sculpture "The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even" (commonly known as "The Large Glass," 1915-23). In this poster, Duchamp holds the section from the lower part of "The Large Glass" called the "Oculist Witnesses." In other words, this poster is a work in which Duchamp himself holds and gazes at a replica of his own work produced by Hamilton. Film is applied to express the transparency of the glass plate shown in the photograph, and depending on the viewing angle, it functions so much like glass that Duchamp's face disappears due to reflections. Furthermore, as the title "Oculist Witnesses" suggests, it is a work that contemplates the act of seeing. Although this photograph was taken by Hamilton, the glass surface functions such that the original creator Duchamp in the background and the re-creator Hamilton are in a mirror-image relationship. One loses track of where the silver-shining iconography is positioned.

Shuzo Takiguchi (1903-79), the former owner of this poster who had an interest in Duchamp, collaborated with Kazuo Okazaki (1930-2022) to create a three-dimensional work titled "Kenganzu (Eye Test Chart)" (1977), which focused on the "Oculist Witnesses" section of Duchamp's work.

This poster is currently on display at the Keio University Art Center (KUAC) in the Art Archive Exhibition XXVII "Correspondence Poetry or Letters and Inspiration: Shuzo Takiguchi and Shusaku Arakawa / Madeline Gins" (March 17 - May 30, 2025).

(Hitoshi Kubo, Archivist / Staff Member, Keio University Art Center (KUAC))