Philippe Dagen imagines Arthur Cravan survived drowning

In his novel 'Lassitude', art critic Philippe Dagen (formerly of Le Monde) presents a fictionalized account of Arthur Cravan, the early 20th-century poet, boxer, and provocateur, as having survived his presumed drowning off the coast of Mexico in 1918. Cravan, known for his Dadaist magazine 'Maintenant' and his claim that his uncle Oscar Wilde was still alive, becomes a figure of perpetual evasion. Dagen's narrative follows an aging Cravan wrestling with the futility of writing and art, yet compelled to leave traces. The novel includes encounters with historical figures like Picabia, Marie Laurencin, Duchamp (cross-dressing with H.P. Roché), and fictional women Renée, Mina, Kate, and Mrs. Keane. Dagen critiques the art world's commercialization, with artists 'standing before their canvas like girls at the entrance of their hotel.' The story moves from geographical wandering to madness, echoing Poe's 'The Pit and the Pendulum.' The review by Marc Albert-Levin in artpress notes the irony of Dagen, a well-known critic, being drawn to Cravan's tabula rasa.