One hundred years ago, Marcel Duchamp coined the term “readymade”, referring to his Porte-bouteilles or Bottle Rack (first conceived in 1914)—a metal tower with prongs often used in France to dry wine bottles.
Now, the Austrian dealer Thaddaeus Ropac is to sell a unique version of the sculpture, created in 1959, on behalf of the Rauschenberg Foundation in New York. It will be at the heart of an exhibition opening on 20 October (until 14 January 2017) at Ropac’s Paris gallery to mark the centenary of the readymade.
The foundation declined to give a price, but those in the trade expect the bottle dryer to sell for around $10m. In 2009, Duchamp’s Dadaist perfume bottle, Belle haleine—eau de voilette, sold for $11.5m. The work, which came from the collection of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé, was an “assisted” readymade, meaning it had creative input from the artist. In a statement, the gallery says it will only sell Bottle Rack to a public museum.
There are five surviving iterations of the sculpture. The original version, which Duchamp bought from the Parisian department store Grand Bazar de l’Hôtel de Ville, was lost—as was a 1935-36 version owned by Man Ray. The Surrealist artist bought a replacement that was subsequently bought by Robert Rauschenberg.
The Rauschenberg Foundation says it is selling the work to help fund its catalogue raisonné project, which it is launching next year. “Having a more diverse portfolio—of cash investments and art—allows us to focus on our core legacy,” it says.
Ropac’s show will also include drawings and other works by Duchamp that relate directly to the bottle dryer. Other loans include Man Ray photographs of the readymade dating from the 1930s and a letter written by Rauschenberg describing his acquisition of the work.
