Saint Sebastien

Artist Marcel Duchamp (French, 1887-1968, active in Paris and New York)

Date1909

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsImage: 24 1/8 x 18 1/4 in. (61.3 x 46.4 cm)
Frame: 30 3/16 × 24 3/8 × 2 1/2 in. (76.7 × 61.9 × 6.4 cm)

ClassificationsPaintings

Credit LineGift of Mary Sisler Foundation, 1979

Object numberMF79.1.5

At the time that these five works by Marcel Duchamp were created, painting as an artistic discipline was still valid. This would all change in Duchamp's lifetime; indeed, he would be at the forefront of this cosmic shift in the art world. Here his work shows the influence of the Impressionists and their successors - artists like Paul Cézanne, Paul Gauguin and Paul Signac. These works illustrate Duchamp's fluency with impasto, the technique of building up layers of thick paint on the canvas. At the same time, the artist's delicate handling of color and line are noticeable where multiple lines of color animate the surface. Seen together, these vibrant works celebrate Duchamp's early career as a painter, and are strangely removed from his productions that were to follow.

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