Art with Bite

Before you get too confused, the "Spirit of Cobra" exhibition at the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale has nothing to do with snakes. Cobra (or COBRA or CoBrA) was an avant-garde movement in Europe from 1948 to 1951. It was Christian Dotremont, a Belgian painter, who coined the name Cobra, from the names of the three cities where the movement flourished; Copenhagen (Co), Brussels (Br), and Amsterdam (A). Why does this matter here in South Florida? Well, no art movement ever really dies. Once born, they live on forever through the influence they exert on the artists who come after them and the art they create. MOAFL has many pieces throughout its collection that were created under the influence of Cobra. To educate the art-loving public about the influence of this short-lived but important movement, MOAFL has curated the "Spirit of Cobra" exhibition in cooperation with the Cobra Museum of Modern Art in Amstelveen, Netherlands. Take a tour through the exhibit and not only will you get a lesson in art history but you will experience a peek into the arcane art world and see how artists are influenced and inspired. You can finally be one of those snooty people you complain about who "get art." "Spirit of Cobra" runs through May 18 at the NSU Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale, located at 1 E. Las Olas Blvd. Museum hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (with extended hours on Thursdays until 8 p.m.) and Sundays noon to 5 p.m. The museum is closed Mondays. Admission is $10 for adults, $7 for seniors and military, $5 for students, and free for children 12 and under. Call 954-525-5500, or visit moafl.org.
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Thursdays, 11 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sundays, 12-5 p.m. Starts: Jan. 3. Continues through May 18, 2014