Marcel Duchamp - Hommage à Caissa (for the Marcel Duchamp Fund of the American Chess Foundation), 1966

This rare 1966 silkscreen poster commemorates the "Hommage à Caissa" exhibition at New York’s Cordier & Ekstrom Gallery, a fundraiser organized by Marcel Duchamp for the American Chess Foundation. The event featured contributions from 36 iconic artists, including Salvador Dalí, Jasper Johns, and Alexander Calder, and is famously remembered for Andy Warhol’s uninvited "guerrilla attack" appearance with the Velvet Underground. The poster's design incorporates RSVP cards sent to participating artists, some featuring personal notes and autographs.

The document highlights the intersection of the mid-century avant-garde and Duchamp’s lifelong passion for chess, illustrating how he leveraged his social capital to support the game. Beyond its historical value, the exhibition produced significant market rarities, such as Duchamp’s "Chessboard" readymade, which has fetched over half a million dollars at auction. The item serves as a primary record of a pivotal moment where Pop Art, Surrealism, and Dada converged in a single philanthropic effort.