SALERNES.- Amazingly enough it is the first time that two well-known CoBrA artists Eugène Brands (1913-2002) and Shinkichi Tajiri (1923-2009) are exhibiting together. At least, if we leave out the room in the Stedelijke Museum where their works were united during the notorious exhibition in november 1949 (Exposition Internationale d’Art Expérimental - Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, 3-28 nov. 1949) which marked the height of the CoBra movement, lasting only three years.

Afterwards all those strong characters like Karel Appel, Corneille, Constant, Asger Jorn, Carl Henning Pedersen, Dotremont, Doucet, Alechinsky followed their individual development, though mutual friendships remained lifelong.

Like all of them Brands and Tajiri had a very productive, rich creative life with a large actieradius resulting in important expositions worldwide, their work ending up in important private collections and famous musea (Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam CoBrA museum, Nelson Rockefeller Collection (Tajiri); a still continuing process.

At first sight the work of the Dutch Brands and the Amerikaans-Japanse Tajiri with their completely different backgrounds, doesn’t seem to have much in common. Tajiri's large clearcut Ronin sculptures are miles away from the poetic, dreamily paintings and gouaches by Brands. But actually they were very close in their life philosophy and thereby their work for which they had a mutual interest and high regard.

The mythical 'M ‘from Brands, referring his fascination with the Mystery of life and the always evolving infinite universe is much complying with Tajiri's aim to bring together the Eastern and Western art and contradictions in his uniting simple but so ingenious knots. Art for both went far beyond a cultural expression an encounters itself seamlessly in ' ZEN’

The exhibition is on view at the Fondation Herman Krikhaar through June 26, 2016.