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                                 Marcel 
                                  Duchamp was born on July 28, 1887. Duchamp began 
                                  to paint in 1908. After producing several canvases 
                                  in the current mode of Fauvism, he turned toward 
                                  experimentation and the avant-garde, producing 
                                  his most famous work, Nude Descending a Staircase, 
                                  No. 2 in 1912; portraying continuous movement 
                                  through a chain of overlapping cubistic figures, 
                                  the painting caused a furor at New York City's 
                                  famous Armory Show in 1913.  
                                   
                                  
 
                                   
                                  In sculpture, Duchamp pioneered two of the main 
                                  innovations of the 20th century kinetic art 
                                  and ready-made art. His "ready-mades" consisted 
                                  simply of everyday objects, such as a urinal 
                                  and a bottle rack. His Bicycle Wheel, an early 
                                  example of kinetic art, was mounted on a kitchen 
                                  stool. 
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