Indestructible Object

Indestructible Object

Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), American, 1890-1976 Indestructible Object (or Object to Be Destroyed). 1964 (replica of 1923 original) Metronome with cutout photograph of eye on pendulum, 8 7/8 x 4 5/8” (22.5 x 11.6 cm) The Museum of Modern Art, New York. James Thrall Soby Fund, 1966 © 2006 Man Ray Trust / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris
Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), American, 1890-1976
Indestructible Object (or Object to Be Destroyed). 1964 (replica of 1923 original)
Metronome with cutout photograph of eye on pendulum, 8 7/8 x 4 5/8” (22.5 x 11.6 cm)
The Museum of Modern Art, New York. James Thrall Soby Fund, 1966
© 2006 Man Ray Trust / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris

 

First of all, I just want to address my overall first impression of my chosen work, the 1918 Manifesto and Kurt Schwitter’s “Usonate”. Personally, I feel really uncomfortable when accepting or even just knowing Dadaism, because I like the things that has at least some organization; however, in Dadaist world, everything can be regarded as Dadaism, but at the same time nothing is really the Dadaism. It’s such a world of chaos. Even writing this blog makes me wonder why can’t I just choose 200-300 random words, read them in front of others and tell them that this is my Dadaist blog. However, when I truly start to interpret the Dadaist art, I seemingly begin to understand its value. Indestructible Object, as later retitled, is a simple metronome with a drawing of eye in the middle. Such random and arbitrary composition leaves the viewers plenty of space to think and interpret in their own ways, which largely expand the creator’s intention and make art boundless. When I first saw the Indestructible Object, it reminded me of Eye of Horus in ancient Egypt, which later appeared in the background of a pyramid. The shapes of these two objects are very alike: both have an eye in front of a triangular object. Because it’s a piece of Dadaist art, any interpretation is acceptable and won’t be more ridiculous than the art itself. Indestructible Object to me perfectly matches the ideas in Dada Manifesto in which it mentioned Dadaism is self-contradictory. Man Ray changed the title of his artwork from Object to be Destroyed to Indestructible Object, which explains the seemingly existed rule in Dadaism.

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