A progenitor of the antagonism between authorship and authenticity in art, Marcel Duchamp questioned the possibilities of what constitutes a work of art via his ready-mades. Overturning the use value of factory-made household objects, Duchamp transformed the items through their placement, or combination with other objects. Duchamp also called into question the role of the artist's identity by releasing artworks under two alter egos: R. Mutt and Rrose Sélavy. The second issue of the Dada publication The Blind Man includes Louise Norton's response to the infamous rejection of R. Mutt's (Marcel Duchamp's) Fountain, which was submitted to the Society of Independent Artists exhibition of 1917. Acting as Rrose Sélavy, Duchamp made a variety of works, including a miniature model, Fresh Window, and the work Belle haleine - Eau de voilette, in which the artist made a new label for an actual bottle of Rigaud perfume using a photograph of himself dressed in women's clothing, which was taken by the photographer May Ray.
- Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray, eds. "The Richard Mutt Case." The Blind Man 2, 1917.
- Pontus Hulton, ed. Marcel Duchamp: Work and Life. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 1993.
- Marcel Duchamp. Milan: Bompiani, 1993.