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[I’ve received your letter announcing...]

Letter from 22 February 1947

Correspondence

Author

Author Marcel Duchamp
Letter to André Breton
People cited Mary Callery, Julius Carlebach, Francis Valentine Dudensing, Fernand Léger, Pierre Matisse, Man Ray, Hans Richter, Alexander Calder, Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst, Joan Miró

Description

Letter from Marcel Duchamp to André Breton dated 22 February 1947 about the 1947 exhibition.

Seven letters from Marcel Duchamp to André Breton, all related to the preparation of the exhibition Le Surréalisme en 1947 at the Galerie Maeght in Paris, which attest to the inexhaustible resources of this co-organiser and the amount of work he did in federating the entire network of surrealist friends on the other side of the Atlantic - from Miró to Max Ernst through Granell (whom he does not yet know) and many others. The 1947 exhibition at the Galerie Maeght was the result of a genuine team effort, both in the terms of organisation and creation: Duchamp discussed it with Kiesler before sending his suggestions to André Breton, giving all of his creativity to the way the rooms and altars might be organised without ever fixing an idea or imposing a determination. [Atelier André Breton website, 2005]

Exceptional set of 7 handwritten letters signed by Marcel Duchamp and sent to André Breton, all related to the preparation of the exhibition Le Surréalisme en 1947 at the Galerie Maeght in Paris.

Letter, dated 22 February 1947.
- 2 pages in-4 in ink by Duchamp, of a letter dated 22 February 1947 (envelope retained):

‘Received your letter announcing the improvement of the credits. For my part, I am looking for economy and have decided not to ask for more than three paintings per painter and in many cases only two. I have asked Richter to make a cut of his film, the cut will include 6 or 7 passages of 10 minutes each, by Max Ernst, Man Ray, Calder, Richter, Léger, Duchamp and could be given as a performance of about an hour.’ [Translator’s note: the reference is to Hans Richter’s film Dreams that Money Can Buy (1947)] [sale catalogue, 2003]

*This entry was translated from the French by Michael Richardson

Voir le film sur Internet Archive

Creation date22/02/1947
Postmarked date22/02/1947
Destination address
Bibliographical material

Ms, navy ink - two pages in-4° signed.
Conserved envelop.

LanguagesFrench
From / ProvenanceEnvoi de l'auteur
Place of origin
Library

Bibliothèque Kandinsky, Centre Pompidou, Paris : BRET 1.8

Number of pages2
Reference742000
Breton Auction, 2003Lot 2282
Keywords, ,
CategoriesCorrespondence, Letters to André Breton
Set[Correspondance] Lettres de Marcel Duchamp à André Breton, [Exhibitions] 1947, Exposition Maeght 1947
Exhibition1947, Le Surréalisme en 1947
Permanent linkhttps://www.andrebreton.fr/en/work/56600100999949
Place of origin
Place of destination
Exhibition place