Early Life and Artistic Foundations Marcel Duchamp, born Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp on July 28, 1887, in Blainville, Normandy, France, was the youngest of six children within a family steeped in artistic tradition. His grandfather, a shipping agent with a passion for engraving, laid the groundwork for an appreciation of visual arts, while his older brothers, Jacques Villon and Raymond Duchamp-Villon, were already established artists by the time Marcel arrived in Paris in 1904. This familial legacy, coupled with the influence of his father’s notary profession – a role that fostered a keen ey…