Marcel Duchamp transformed the trajectory of 20th-century art by introducing the 'Readymade,' a concept where mass-produced, everyday objects are elevated to the status of art through the artist's selection rather than manual craft. Beginning with a bicycle wheel in 1913 and a bottle rack in 1914, Duchamp eventually formalized the term during a 1915 stay in New York, where the city's industrial modernity and lack of rigid class structures inspired him to challenge traditional definitions of creativity.
This shift from 'retinal' art—intended only to please the eye—to a conceptual approach remains one of the most significant milestones in art history. By signing and inscribing items like snow shovels and urinals, Duchamp dismantled the requirement for technical virtuosity and paved the way for future movements such as Pop Art, Minimalism, and Conceptualism. His legacy persists in the ongoing debate over what constitutes a work of art and the role of the artist's intent in the creative process.