Duchamp's Telegram: From Beaux-Arts to Art-in-General by Thierry de Duve (review).

The main focus of the text is Thierry de Duve's exploration of the historical significance of Marcel Duchamp's work, particularly his piece "Fountain" (1917), and its role in the transition from traditional art systems to what de Duve terms the "Art-in-General" system. De Duve argues that the acceptance of Duchamp's urinal as art signifies a pivotal moment in which the definition of art expanded to include anything presented by a self-identified artist, a shift initiated by the formation of the Société des Artistes Indépendants in 1884. The book examines the delays in the recognition of this shift, particularly the gap between Duchamp's submission of "Fountain" and its reception by artists in the 1960s, while also suggesting that the implications of this transition extend beyond visual art to other forms of artistic expression. De Duve's work is positioned as part of a larger project that may further investigate the reasons behind the dominance of the Art-in-General system. [Extracted from the article]