Its part of the USPS sheet "Modern Art in America", but Duchamp was French born and he made this painting in France. And it became famous in America when it was shown in NYC, where Americans called it "Explosion in a Shingle Factory" and a magazine offered a ten dollar reward for anyone who could "find the lady." But its now at the Philadelphia Art Museum, so it is allowed on the stamp.
Personally, I think this picture is a condensation of another painting from 30 years before, "The Golden Stairs".
Duchamp himself has a biography with details that are difficult to believe. He seems to have stopped painting a few years after this in order to play chess in Argentina. Yes! He became a "chess journalist"! Samuel Beckett wrote about Duchamp in the 1957 play "Endgame". Duchamp moved to Greenwich Village in 1942 and gained American citizenship in 1955.
http://www.philamuseum.org/collections/permanent/51449.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Golden_Stairs
and by the way, that single stamp is offered today on eBay for $2.37 ( +$1.17 shipping expense!)
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