Fountain
- Artist: Marcel Duchamp
- Date: 1917, replica 1964
- Medium: Porcelain
- Dimensions: unconfirmed: 360 x 480 x 610 mm
- Museum: Tate Modern
- Collection record: Tate Modern website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is the “Fountain” by Marcel Duchamp. Created in 1917 as a ready‑made, it was a simple porcelain urinal turned on its side and signed “R. Mutt 1917”. Duchamp used the pseudonym and the title to tease the idea of a fountain—an everyday object that, when turned, looks like a spurt of water. The original has vanished, so what we see is a 1964 replica made of glazed earthenware and painted to mimic the lost porcelain. It’s one of at least ten copies produced by Arturo Schwartz, each bearing the black “R. Mutt, 1917” inscription. The piece embodies Duchamp’s playful double meanings and his challenge to what counts as art. It invites viewers to question authority, humour, and the role of the artist.
See it in person
Fountain is in the collection of Tate Modern on Bankside, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
