Context

For this course, we will focus on some of the highlights of Modern Art, which was a movement–stretching from the 1870’s to the 1970’s–whose practitioners sought to break with the traditions of the past to forge new ways of seeing and experiencing the world. In this assignment, you will read about one of its daring souls, Marcel Duchamp, and the extent to which he was willing to go to rebel against the past.

Instructions

Read the first chapter from What Are You Looking At by Will Gompertz. It is attached to this discussion. Then, post a comment of between 300 to 400 words in response to the following questions. That’s 300 to 400 words total, NOT per question. If you are taking the course for two credit hours, your comment should be between 600 and 800 words. Again, that’s 600 to 800 words total, NOT per question.

Please do not try to write one paper in which you take up the three questions together. Instead, answer the questions separately.

• What were Duchamp’s goals in entering Fountain into the 1917 Independents Exhibition? Simply list them concisely and clearly. That is to say that your answer need not be written in formal paragraphs. There was more than one goal. You have to read the whole chapter to find all of them.
• Refer back to the chapter by Becky Hendrick you read last week. In particular, have a look at what she wrote about art being an expression of truth. You’ll find it on p. 6 of her chapter. She writes there that “all great art reaches toward that which is true.” Would Fountain qualify as great art in this way? Does it reach “toward that which is true?” Make an argument either for or against the notion that Fountain qualifies as art in this way and back up your argument with at least two points. Explain your points fully and clearly.

Some Tips for Writing Well

• Even thought this is quite a short piece of writing I’m asking you to do, take in the following writing tips in order to craft well all of your assignments for this course.
• While this is a post to a discussion, avoid the mistake of thinking of it as a text message or a comment in social media. This is an assignment for a class.
• Do not wait until the day before the assignment is due to churn out a rushed response.
• Do several drafts and allow at least a night to go by between each one so that you can come back to the next revision with fresh eyes. That means completing your first draft no later than Sunday.
• Think of your writing as a piece of sculpture. You chisel away until the truth of what you mean to communicate emerges.
• When you do go back to your latest draft, pretend you’ve never read it before. With that mindset, ask yourself whether what you’ve written makes sense, carries the reader along from one point to the next in a logical way, and engages the reader with thoughtful points.
• Find the right balance between too much detail and not enough.