On Pioneer Spirit of Duchamp's Fountain

In the selection of Turner Prize of 2004, Duchamp's Fountain beat Picasso's Avignon Maiden and Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe and became the most influential work in the 20^th century. Thereafter, the urinal taken as an artwork has become the goal of people's criticism. The comments concerning it have appeared one after another, just like a complete negation of the traditional artistic concept, a challenge against the artistic boundary and breaking of boundary between art and daily life, or even the proposition of complete new perspective of viewing an artwork. These comments are somewhat reasonable. However, the pioneer spirit of Duchamp's Fountain lies in the opening of matter sense it presents. Further, it is mingled with our life and has become a part of sensibility liberation tide under the background of modern crisis. Therefore, this paper has made an attempt to highlight the exploration of matter sense on basis of interpreting the pioneering significance of Fountain and explained the meaning for overcoming the modern crisis.