Readymade

Marcel Duchamp coined the term ‘readymade’ in 1916 to describe his art created from manufactured objects. It's now used for similar works by others.

In 1916, Marcel Duchamp introduced the term ‘readymade’ to describe ordinary, often mass-produced objects that artists select and designate as art by isolating them from their original purpose. When artists combine or alter the components of such works, they are referred to as ‘assisted Readymades’.

While Duchamp initially coined the term to describe his own artwork, it has since been used more broadly to refer to artworks created from manufactured objects. For instance, artworks by Damien Hirst, Michael Landy, and Tracey Emin, including Emin's "My Bed" from 1998, can also be classified as readymades.