The word "infrathin" (translated from the French word inframince) was coined in the 1930s by conceptual artist Marcel Duchamp (remember his urinal Fountain?), but in typical Duchampian fashion, he claimed that it couldn’t be defined. Instead, he insisted that one could only give examples of it.

Over the course of his life, he gave a handful, including: fire without smoke, the warmth of a seat which has just been left, reflection from a mirror or glass, watered silk, iridescence, the people who go through (subway gates) at the very last moment, velvet trousers whistling sound … an infrathin separation signalled.

The original notes, now kept in the Cabinet d’Art Graphique archive at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, were written by Duchamp, in French over time, between 1912 and his death in 1968, on 46 mainly undated scraps of paper. They were the subject of PhD research by architect Rebecca Loewen who looks to apply Duchamp’s concept of infrathin to spaces in architecture, performance and writing.

In 2018 eight students associated with the Center for Programs in Contemporary Writing at the University of Pennsylvania, under the editorship of Kenneth Goldsmith, expanded on Duchamp’s initial examples by generating their combined list of a further 1,000 infrathins.

In his afterword to 1000 Infrathins Goldsmith writes:

“Without getting too specific, we can surmise that infrathin is the space between spaces, the sound between sounds, the sensation between sensations; neither here nor there, this nor that, but both—all at the same time. The closest metaphor is the fourth dimension, which is best illustrated by a cube collapsing in on itself and at the same time expanding. I know. It’s not very helpful. But that’s the whole point—it’s a moving target, a ball of contradictions; just when you think you’ve got it, it’s escaped you.”

Still a bit confused? So you should be. We’ll leave you with these examples from 1000 Infrathins (along with their numerical order in the book):

11: The blank page in a book that precedes the title page.
23: The surface of a mirror is the infrathin intersection between physical reality and light perception.
40: The glacial process by which the pages of old books yellow.
53: When you laugh at a joke but do not know why.
81: When you touch something that is either really hot or really cold and you can’t tell the difference.
115: A photograph of a photograph.
153: The lingering of a musical note long after it is played.
191: Not a duck, not a rabbit, both, and neither. See also Duck-Rabbit Illusion [RR#1: 18].
263: The sound of the ocean heard inside of a shell.
289: The impression left on your head after you remove your hat.
343: In a dream, dying.
374: The smell of your mother’s perfume on another woman.
383: Fake pockets in women’s pants.
418: How my finger turns from red to white to red when I press down on a hard surface.
475: The feeling when a clown enters a room.
542: When you can smell rain before it comes. [RR#2: 68]
598: Humble bragging.
708: The moment between pulling the cord and parachute deployment.
764: The change in behavior due to the feeling of being watched when nobody’s
817: International plug converters.
821: When the music in ear buds is just loud enough for a neighbor to hear.
844: The feeling of regret, the moment after hitting send.
855: Act naturally.
926: The demarcation of transitions in a color gradient.
981: When a bubble lands intact on the ground.

Story Idea: Elizabeth Jigalin
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References

monoskop.org/log/?p=20050
rebeccaloewen.com/inframince
degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110724240/html?lang=en
giagia.co.uk/2021/10/22/infrathin

Images

1. Inframince Notes Wall Map, Rebecca Loewen, 2016; Duchamp's original notes
2. Marcel Duchamp (double exposure portrait) by Victor Obsatz, 1953
3. Fountain is a readymade sculpture by Marcel Duchamp in 1917, consisting of a porcelain urinal signed "R. Mutt". Credit: Philadelphia Museum of Art.
4 & 5. Duchamp infrathin notes. The second translates as: "Infra-thin separation between the sound of a gunshot (very close) and the appearance of the brand the ball on the target (maximum distance 3 to 4 meters. – Fairground shooting"
6. Book: 1000 Infrathins. View entire book as PDF HERE.