Marcel's masterpiece : how a toilet shaped the history of art /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

An engaging, kid-friendly introduction to artist Marcel Duchamp and how he turned a toilet into a famous work of art.

This is the story of Marcel Duchamp and how the Dada art movement changed the way people thought about what art could be, and what could be art. From drawing a moustache on the Mona Lisa to attaching a bicycle wheel to a stool, Duchamp's work challenged long-held notions of art and how it should be made. People were amused, confused, and sometimes offended, and that was just the way Marcel Duchamp liked it.

With Marcel's Masterpiece , Jeff Mack explores Duchamp's most famous provocation, and asks readers to ponder the ideas that help us see the world in new and interesting ways.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

This picture book biography of French artist Marcel Duchamp (1887--1968) begins with his conceptualizing 1917's Fountain, an upside down urinal displayed in a "fancy art show" in New York. Shown in Mack's art as a wiry, straw-boater-sporting imp, Duchamp delights in the outrage and controversy that ensues, declaring, "Well, it did get people to think about art, didn't it?" The book's second half looks more broadly at Duchamp and his influence, including his Readymades; his alter ego, Rrose Sélavy; and the Dada movement with which he is associated, inviting readers to regard art in terms of "what ideas help us think about our world in new and interesting ways." Mixed-media cartooned vignettes, punctuated with collaged elements, including the laugh-out-loud text itself (about visiting Fountain, figures mention needing "to go"), strike just the right balance of headiness and breezy mischievousness for a young audience--innate connoisseurs of épater le bourgeoisie. Ages 4--8. (Aug.)

Booklist Review

ldquo;Come to dada!" Beginning with the salvaged urinal Marcel Duchamp retitled "Fountain" and turned on its head to do the same to the stuffier reaches of the art world, this pun-tastic ramble through the realms of the "readymade" serves as both a quick history of Dadaism and a manifesto of its ideas. Mack's collage illustrations combine statements of purpose in randomly colored block letters, patches of explanatory background distributed among clipped and layered images of both fustian and free-spirited museum goers, glimpses of Duchamp as both himself with some of his creations and his female alter ego Rrose Sélavy, celebrity cameos from the likes of Picasso and Warhol to John Cage, and a notably diverse array of modern children running around and getting excited about art. His point that art is any thing or concept that helps us think about our world in new and interesting ways--be it a centuries-old painting or the banana that Maurizio Cattelan taped to a wall in 2019 ("But why, Maurizio?" "It's Got A Peel.")--is made with freewheeling hilarity and thoroughly persuasive conviction.

Kirkus Book Review

Marcel Duchamp's use of a urinal to challenge assumptions about art in 1917 New York has inherent kid appeal--and Mack exploits the possibilities. The artist is first glimpsed holding a pen and standing next to Mona Lisa, who sports an inky mustache and goatee. Readers then see a star pattern shaved into Duchamp's hair--examples of how a bizarre sensibility permeated his art. The book is primarily concerned, however, with the furor caused when Duchamp purchased the toilet from a sanitation company ("Come to Dada," he croons affectionately) and submitted it to the "fancy art show." Collages employ acrylics, watercolors, digital ink, and materials with interesting textures. The narrative is set on strips of colored paper, while the dialogue is presented in capital letters in different colors and fonts; some appear pasted on. These techniques are characteristic of the Dada art movement, contextualized in a more straightforward (but still engaging) addendum. The design is inspired. Potty humor and wordplay abound: "It says here there's a toilet in an art show and everyone will be going." Mack takes some liberties with the truth; the exhibition's organizers actually excluded the piece from the show (it appeared in the catalog), whereas Mack has visitors reacting to it. This decision does focus attention on actual responses (people were amused or aghast at the concept) and on the questions Duchamp provoked about the nature of art. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A funny, clever consideration of an iconic object. (Informational picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Jeff Mack is a children's book author whose books include the Hippo and Rabbit series, Frog and Fly in Six Slurpy Stories , the Clueless McGee books, and Art Is Everywhere: A Book About Andy Warhol . He lives in Western Massachusetts where he continues to write and illustrate books, paint murals, and visit schools and libraries to talk about his work.