Box in a Suitcase

One of the many key roles of a Subject Liaison Librarian is collection development. In Art, this involves being on the ball as things are often published in small editions and go out of print very quickly. I was therefore pleased to get my hands on a copy of this new reconceptualisation of Marcel Duchamp’s legendary book-object Boîte-en-valise.

Duchamp devised his ‘box in a suitcase’ in the years leading up to WW2 so that he could easily transport his ‘complete works’ at any time. This miniature museum has become one of the most important and enigmatic pieces of modernist art and will serve as contextual material for the many critical texts we have on Duchamp, one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. It is a very lovely thing indeed.

Elizabeth Lawes, Subject Liaison Librarian for Fine Art, History of Art & Film Studies