Marcel Duchamp's "In Advance of the Broken Arm"

Marcel Duchamp, a French artist, is one of the most famous Dadaists and surrealists of the movement. Dadaism is one of the many new forms that appeared after World War One. Rejecting conventions, artists of the style used off-the-wall techniques to get society's attention. The movement was anti-rational and the name is a vital part of its meaning. The name sounds like nonsense and jumbled and is an accurate portrayal of the style. Dadaists among most of the new styles were anti-war as well. They did not approve of the nationalism and other causes that bought about the war. Dadaists used their art to convey their anti-war messages in a way that was supposed to catch peoples' attention and make them think.

In Duchamp's "In Advance of the Broken Arm," his views of the war are clear. At first glance, it appears to be just a shovel. But, a longer look reveals more. When a burial was conducted, a rare occurrence during the war, a shovel is used to dig the grave of the fallen soldier. So many people died during the war that if every one was buried properly one would break his arm burying them all. Therefore, the shovel used to dig the graves preceeds the broken arm as the title states. The plain, blank background complements the focal point but does not take away from it. The shovel is the only focal point of the painting so Duchamp did not want the background to distract from the point he was trying to make with the shovel.

Duchamp was one of the most prominent artists of the time. Using his influence, he created new ways of looking at objects in a form called Dadaism to awaken the world to the horrors of the war and the time that followed.