MARCEL DUCHAMP (1887 - 1968) Esquivons les Ecchymoses des Esquimaux aux Mots Exquis.
Offset lithograph with embossment on die-cut paper disk, 1968. 165 mm; 6½ inches (diameter). Artist's proof, aside from the edition of approximately 2,000 mounted to vinyl record. Initialed and dated in white ink, lower center. Published by The Letter Edged in Black Press, New York. From S.M.S. #2.
S.M.S. (Shit Must Stop) was a bi-monthly publication conceived by artist, collector and dealer William Copley and his collaborator Dmitri Petrov. Operating out of their Upper West Side loft, which functioned as an unofficial hangout for the participating artists (some including Man Ray, Meret Oppenheim, Richard Hamilton and Roy Lichtenstein) each issue offered a portfolio of small-scale, often whimsical, artworks. Available by subscription and delivered via mail, it was Copley's goal to make contemporary art easily accessible to nearly anyone. Ultimately short-lived, S.M.S. mailed out a total of 6 issues between February and December of 1968.
S.M.S. #2 contained works by Nicolas Calas, Bruce Conner, Marcia Herscovitz, Alain Jacquet, Ray Johnson, Lee Lozano, Meret Oppenheim, Bernard Pfreim, George Reavevy and Clovis Trouille, with Duchamp creating the cover. The cover comprised of an offset lithograph on vinyl record, affixed to a white paper folder with a removable pin. The record plays a seven-minute recording of Duchamp reading excerpts aloud from his previous Dadaist text works, including Written Wrotten, 1939-1940, and the Green Box. On the label, we see the French tongue-twister "Esquivons les Ecchymoses des Esquimaux aux mots Exquis" printed in a spiral, showcasing his longstanding fascination with puns, word games, and optical illusion. The phrase, which roughly translates to "We dodge the bruises of the Eskimos in exquisite words," must be read aloud in order to unlock its alliterative and tongue-twister quality, requiring an auditory aspect to fully activate the work. This piece was one of the last the artist created before his death in October of 1968.
