Marcel Duchamp, known for his nonchalant attitude toward the material status of his artworks, paradoxically exerted meticulous control over their afterlife. The article examines his detailed instructions for the posthumous installation of his secret sculptural environment *Étant donnés* (1946–66) at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, including a four-ring binder of notes specifying everything from architectural dimensions to lightbulb wattage. It also highlights his earlier role as cofounder of the Société Anonyme, Inc., where he balanced artistic control with delegation, selecting artists like Louis Eilshemius for exhibitions despite their differing sensibilities.
This matters because it challenges the prevailing narrative of Duchamp as an artist who fully embraced contingency and rejected artistic genius. Instead, it reveals a figure deeply engaged in arts administration and posthumous control, complicating our understanding of his legacy. The article, tied to MoMA's current exhibition *Marcel Duchamp: In the end*, underscores how Duchamp's relationship with materiality and institutional power remains relevant to contemporary debates about authorship, curatorial intent, and the artist's role in shaping their own reception.