Marcel Duchamp’s 1917 work that introduced a urinal signed “R. Mutt” into the art-world debate was Fountain.
Duchamp submitted a commercially manufactured urinal, turned it on its side, and signed it “R. Mutt.” He presented the object to the Society of Independent Artists exhibition in New York, where the organizers rejected it despite the group’s stated policy of accepting submitted works.
Fountain became a landmark in the history of readymades, artworks based on existing manufactured objects selected or repositioned by an artist. Its importance lies less in craftsmanship than in the questions it raises about authorship, selection, context, institutions, and the definition of art.
The work is often loosely labeled Surrealist, but Duchamp’s relationship to Surrealism was complex, and Fountain is more directly associated with Dada and the readymade. Another common confusion is to treat “R. Mutt” as the artist’s name. It was the pseudonym attached to Duchamp’s submission.