Replicas and more: Marcel Duchamp The Large Glass—Stockholm, London, Tokyo, and Paris  

The National Center for Art Research, Japan (abbreviation: NCAR; director: Kataoka Mami) has partnered with Tama Art University Art Archives Center (AAC; director: Mitsuda Yuri) to hold the international symposium “Replicas and more: Marcel Duchamp The Large Glass—Stockholm, London, Tokyo, and Paris” on March 1, 2025, at Tama Art University’s Hachioji campus.

With his iconic work Fountain, a signed ready-made urinal, Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) radically challenged the notion of “art.” One of his masterpieces, The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors Even, also known as The Large Glass (1915–1923, Philadelphia Museum of Art), is an unfinished work that took eight years to create, leaving plenty of room for interpretation and controversies to this day.

Because of the difficulty of transportation, three replicas have been created to date for exhibition opportunities. The Large Glass—Tokyo Version (LGTV) (1980, Collection of Komaba Museum, University of Tokyo) is the only replica in Asia. After Duchamp’s death, the creation of LGTV was led by Takiguchi Shuzo, who had maintained a friendship with Duchamp, and Tono Yoshiaki, then a professor at Tama Art University, with students from the University of Tokyo and Tama Art University serving as fabricators.

Against this background, Tama Art University has preserved a collection of preparatory studies of LGTV produced by students, which have been announced for official archiving at the AAC, along with a set of materials related to Duchamp, this year. This was made possible with the approval of the copyright owner, the Marcel Duchamp Association, which manages Duchamp’s estate and promotes his works worldwide.

To commemorate the archiving of preparatory studies, the first international symposium on the replicas of The Large Glass and related materials. This symposium will offer an opportunity for curators and researchers at institutions that hold replicas of The Large Glass to gather from Europe and Japan.

At this symposium, we will share insights on each replica’s unique characteristics, conservation condition in different museum environments, the use and maintenance of archival materials related to each replica, and how to effectively use the replica archives in the future.

Under the mission of “connecting, deepening, and expanding art,” NCAR will continue to contribute to the activation and enhancement of museum activities in Japan. Our efforts include collecting and disseminating information both domestically and internationally, promoting the utilization of collection, building person-to-person networks, expanding learning opportunities, and supporting artists.

Symposium outline

Title: NCAR Symposium 004 / Tama Art University Art Archives Symposium 7 “Replicas and more: Marcel Duchamp The Large Glass—Stockholm, London, Tokyo, and Paris”

Date: Saturday, March 1, 2025, 1:30–4:30pm JST

Venue: Tama Art University Lecture Hall A (2-1723 Yarimizu, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo)

Program​
Moderator: Chijiiwa Osamu, Professor, Tama Art University
Opening Address
–Masanori Aoyagi, Chairman of Board Directors, Tama Art University
–Mami Kataoka, Director, National Center for Art Research, Japan
Lecture
–Anna Tellgren, Curator of Photography, Moderna Museet in Stockholm
–Natalia Sidlina, Curator, International Art, Tate Modern
–Mitsuda Yuri, Director, Tama Art University Art Archives Center and Professor, Tama Art University
–Pascal Goblot, Artist, Performer, Videographer, Film Director
–Orimo Katsuya, Research Associate, Komaba Museum, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the College of Arts and Sciences
–Arifuku Kazuaki, Professor, Ariake College of Education and the Arts
Discussion and q&a
Moderator: Okabe Miki, International Relations Group Leader, National Center for Art Research, Japan
Closing Address
Naito Hiroshi, President, Tama Art University
*Schedule and content are subject to change.

Capacity: 200 participants *First-come, first-served basis. Registration will close when the capacity is reached.

Participation fee: Free

Organized by: National Center for Art Research, Japan and Tama Art University Art Archives Center

Cooperation: Tama Art University Media Network Promotion Committee

N.B. ​ 
–Simultaneous interpretation (Japanese & English) available.
–This symposium will not be live streamed. The archive video will be posted on NCAR’s website.
–On the day of the event, the campus cafeterias and convenience store will be closed. Please be aware that the participants cannot buy food and drinks on campus.
–No parking is available, please use public transport.
–The replicas will not be displayed. The LGTV preparatory studies will be displayed at the AAC gallery.

For registration and more information, please see the following link
National Center for Art Research, Japan｜Events｜Symposium “Replicas and more: Marcel Duchamp The Large Glass——Stockholm, London, Tokyo, and Paris.”