This fascinating work on the radical artistic avant-garde in New York City in the early 20th century approaches the topic from an unusual perspective. It does not ignore the work of artists such as Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray, and Franz Picabia, but contrasts their "legitimate" and largely rational work with the "vital Dadaism" of Baroness Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven, a German-born poet and artist who entered the city's cultural scene in the mid-1910s. This independent, highly creative, and sexually insatiable neurotic is presented as the embodiment of that "rabid subjectivity" which, in the author's view, alone can serve as the foundation of a genuine avant-garde in art. The book contains detailed commentary and over 50 color illustrations.