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"The Wedding Bedroom of Solomon's Virgin Bride "1997/ hommage to childhood of Belle Haleine

The full alchemistic meaning of Belle Haleine can be seen in the crown of Duchamp's head, shaven as a five-pointed star.The tonsuring of the head itself signifies the common model of an androgyne: "The clerical sacrificing of the hair is like a symbol of castration... The sacrificing of human hair is a sign of clergy, from the boldness of Eguptian hierophants to the tonsures of catholic priests and Buddhist monks. Despite great differences in their religious thought, a bare head has always been associated with sexual abstinence and celibacy, i.e. with symbolic autocastration". It is no longer necessary to emphasize the significance of androgyny in the alchemistic tradition. Remember only that this characteristic is a special feature of The Quicksilver and Soror Mysica (The Bride).

In alchemistic writings a five-pointed star is identified with quicksilver (The Quicksilver). Argentum vivum, "the natural, not the commonplace one, but 'the one which is called, not without mystery, the star' ...is the basis for sort of art of transformation". At the same time, alchemist took the star as a symbol of the Virgin Bride, another element that substantiates our identification of the Bride and the star. In addition, we can also point out that the seventh, the greatest, enigma of the tarot, is the star whose astrological equivalent is Venus. Just as revealing is the meaning of that card, which symbolizes the cycle of perpetual regeneration and immortality. Finally, this is where we find the third and most important factor of our equation: The star is a symbol of the Philosopher's Stone, the unity of Heaven (the Groom) and Earth (the Bride).

A star-shaped geometrical model (named Solomon's Seal) appeared only at the end of a magistery, to signify that the opus has been succesful. When Duchamp tonsures his head (the alchemistic dish) into a star which symbolizes coniunctio oppositorum, he figuratively expresses an attitude already understood by Gerhard Dorn, i.e. "the magistery is not perceived by the outer eyes but solely by the intellect".

The alchemistic symbol of the star beautifully contains the complex the dramatic field of the matrimonial unification of the Bride and the Groom. It takes place on Duchamp's head (the alchemistic consumption of real matrimony takes place in mind of the Enlightened) - so that, for him, the mental can live - for us, that we can watch and understand it, if it is true that the observers are the ones who create the image".