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Gift

Flat iron with a row of eleven nails adhered to the center of the iron.

Flat iron with a row of eleven nails adhered to the center of the iron.

Artist Man Ray (American, 1890–1976)
Title Gift (Cadeau)
Date 1963 edition (after 1921 original)
Medium Flat iron with steel nails
Dimensions Overall: 6 3/4 x 3 15/16 x 2 13/16 in. (17.1 x 10 x 7.1 cm)
Credit Line Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University
Accession Number 71.95.1

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About this Work

Man Ray took up Duchamp’s concept of the readymade, but imbued his works with a greater sense of mystery. Some of his readymades seem to reference the garment industry, which in the early twentieth century mostly employed Jews, including Man Ray’s parents. Man Ray felt ambivalent about his heritage, perhaps obliquely expressed in this work in the way he renders the iron useless—and dangerous—by adhering fourteen nails to its surface.


Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

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"Gift | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2024. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=71.95.1