The Vanguard Messiah - Lettrism between Jewish Mysticism and the Avant-Garde

The book is the first systematic and elaborate study of the role of the Jewish tradition in the avant-garde movement of lettrism. It rewrites the history of lettrism from the viewpoint of Judaism, and shows that the intellectual legacy of the Jewish tradition in the twentieth century is not confined to philosophy, literature, and literary criticism, but extends into the domains of avant-garde art and poetry.


Sami Sjöberg, University of Helsinki, Finland.