The Parody of the Walker: The Work of Francis Alÿs in María Sonia Cristoff’s Bajo influencia

Abstract

This article deals with the dialogue between literature and visual arts through the analysis of the Belgian-Mexican artist Francis Alÿs parody in the novel Bajo Influencia (2010), by the Argentine writer María Sonia Cristoff. As an ironic approach to contem- porary art world and the figure of the artist, Cristoff’s work reinterprets the flâneur tradition through the story of Cecilio Rave, a character who decides to become an artist by copying the performances of Francis Alÿs. In this literal reading of Alÿs’s work, the novel ironically reflects on the contemporary art practice and the aesthetics of urban walking. Thus, in dialog with a hybrid cartography where artistic forms are integrated within the global flow of knowledge, Cristoff’s novel proposes in nomadism and wan- dering an art that critically assess globalization and the artistic tradition.