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Abstract Absurdist Marxism: The Comic Brothers Examined as Modern Art

A gallery exhibit explores Groucho, Harpo, Chico, Gummo, and Zeppo's influence on pioneering absurdist artists like Marcel Duchamp.


It could be surmised that Groucho and his brothers didn’t exactly embrace art and its varied ethos. That didn’t mean, however, that their contemporaries and generations of artists to follow weren’t influenced by the comedians' exceptional brand of wit, performance and way of looking at the complex social and political times in which they lived. If the glass was to be half empty, then humor could and would provide respite.

The exhibition “Marxism,” currently on view at New York's 303 Gallery, examines the oeuvre of the Marx Brothers through the lens of Marcel Duchamp, Jack Goldstein, Rodney Graham, Tim Lee, and Richard Prince—contemporary artists who have made work about, or relating to, the boisterous brothers.

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