Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968), the painter and mixed media artist was associated with Cubism, Dadaism and Surrealism, though he avoided any alliances. Duchamp's work is charachterized by humor, a wide variety of unconventional media and its incessant probing of the boundries of art. His legacy includes the insight that art can be about ideas instead of worldly things, a revolutionary notion that would resonate with later generations of artists. (from Making Sense of Marcel Duchamp