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Love it or not, it is unimaginable to think about the art world without the influence from its 20th century pioneer artist Marcel Duchamp. Although his artistic production was limited when compared to such celebrated artists like Salvador Dalí or Pablo Picasso, his remarkable theories revolutionized how we think about art and thus impacted how we think about artists and their creative processes, making him an important figure to consider in the arts.

Initially associated with Dadaism and Surrealism, Duchamp established the idea that art could be more than “retinal art,” that is art which only exists to please the eye; for him, art could stimulate the mind, be thought-provoking, and hold no boundaries to how it is made. A look at The 3 Badass Steps Marcel Duchamp Used to Change the Art World sheds light on Duchamp’s impact upon the art world, making him indeed a 20th century badass artist. At the core, he represents the thought that art is everywhere and the artist is everywhere, both of these in face of any notion of hierarchy or social class/status in the art world.

In addition, to the individual artist, he is highly inspirational. Duchamp confessed that doubt was a key factor to the creative process since it is through doubt that one finds new ways to create new things. Moreover, he placed strong emphasis on engaging the spectator. This entails a respect for the viewer and a special recognition of the relationship between him/her and the artwork. Filmmakers on Engaging the Audience shares that As with all the arts, it is the relationship between audience and work that sustains the life of the created object, and Duchamp equally champions the spectator’s role and position: [Art is] a product of two poles–there’s the pole of the one who makes the work, and the pole of the one who looks at it. I give the latter as much importance as the one who makes it.

Whether you are a painter or filmmaker, Marcel Duchamp inspires one to pursue one’s artistic passion and heighten the experience of art itself. Feel the inspiration with Duchamp’s additional words on art and creativity!

Art is not about itself but the attention we bring to it.

The creative act is not performed by the artist alone: the spectator brings the work in contact with the external world by deciphering and interpreting its inner qualifications and thus adds his contribution to the creative act.

What art is, in reality, is this missing link, not the links which exist. It’s not what you see that is art. Art is the gap.

The word “art” interests me very much. If it comes from Sanskrit, as I’ve heard, it signifies “making.” Now everyone makes something, and those who make things on a canvas with a frame, they’re called artists. Formerly, they were called craftsmen, a term I prefer. We’re all craftsmen, in civilian or military or artistic life.

Artists of all times are like the gamblers of Monte Carlo, and this blind lottery allows some to succeed and ruins others. In my opinion, neither the winners nor the losers are worth worrying about.

What I have in mind is that art may be bad, good or indifferent, but, whatever adjective is used, we must call it art, and bad art is still art in the same way that a bad emotion is still an emotion.