Art movements painted themselves in every moment of history. Their influence on culture in their time period transcended decades and centuries. Ancient Art depicted the tales of gods and goddesses of ancient civilizations. Romanticism embraced mankind’s potential and originality during revolutionary times. Surrealism portrayed the denouncement of rational thought post World War I. Circling the globe, art movements made themselves known in the pages of history books as reflections to the times they were born. A particular movement, not a common household name, was the COBRA movement.

What is COBRA?
COBRA, or otherwise known as CoBrA, is an avant-garde style movement founded post World War II in Europe. Its name stood for the home cities of its members: Copenhagen, Brussels, and Amsterdam. Due to the German occupation of Netherlands, the artists were disconnected from the rest of the art world. After the war ended, a group was formed as a rejection to the current art movements. All the artists in the group shared the ideology of experimentation with art and unburdened freedom of color and form. The main focuses of artists’ paintings were violent brushstrokes, distorted human forms, and scintillating colors.

The Artists and Their Influence
The COBRA group consisted of various artists who created numerous works still holds significant influence today. Dutch painter and sculptor, Karel Appel was one of the artists. His painting Child and Beast II was featured in an exhibition at the Museum of Modern art called ‘The New Decade.’ A founding member, Asger Jorn founded the Scandinavian Institute of Comparative Vandalism and built an entire museum in the Danish town of Silkeborg. The movement influenced other artists present in the same time period like the African-American expressionist painter, Herb Gentry who was famous for his unique style very much associated with particular artistic approach of the COBRA group.

Gina Pellón
The group inspired many artists around the world with their interesting methods. Cuban painter and writer, Gina Pellón was one of the artists claimed by the COBRA movement. After fleeing from the Cuban dictatorship to France, she began her career as an abstract painter. It was not until Paris when she became involved with the COBRA group. As one of the few women in the group, her approaches stood out amongst the others. While her works still painted in the bold coloring and abstract human form, her subjects were often women. Her art can still be seen today and in many other galleries located in the US and in Miami. Pellón represented one of the rare finds in the art world in one of the rarer art movements. The value of her art knows no bounds and stands to be a cherished artist any collector would be lucky to have in their collection.