Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray: 50 Years of Alchemy [first edition]

Drawn from several sources, this catalogue includes works by Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray that address the enduring friendship and shared interests of these two artists. The works included explore five decades of the shared milieus and aesthetics of these artist-peers, both of whom so significantly altered the making and understanding of art in the twentieth century. Loosely grouped around thematic concerns, it includes works that exemplify the artists' fascination with the game of chess, the study of optics, and the influence of such diverse sources as African sculpture, as well as the photographic recording of their mutual friends, including portraits of artists, poets and literary figures pivotal to the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. Ingeniously designed, this small volume is both a documentary of the artists' friendship and a study of art in the early 1920s.