The Latin word confluentia refers to the joining of several rivers or creeks to form a single stream, but also a place where two rivers meet, while the verb confluere means “to flow together.” The choice made by Aliska Lahusen and Takesada Matsutani of the title for their exhibition is significant: it describes the mutual relation of the two artists—how they understand their own art and how each defines it in relation to their partner’s art. If we follow the metaphor of a merged stream, then the notional, and also highly symbolic place where this stream starts, where the two artists’ meet, is Paris. The question arises, then, as to what links these two strong creative personalities? Both of these artistic proposals doubtlessly fall into the vein of minimalism, which has a poetic hue in Lahusen’s work and bears a mark of radical expression in Matsutani’s. In both cases, after years of searching for their own artistic path, we are dealing with deeply-considered, informed and mature creative work. The power of Matsutani’s art stems from a profound awareness of his own roots, including the Buddhist tradition, combined with a thorough study of Western art. The unusual effect of Aliska Lahusen’s work is created by her unique sensitivity and openness to universal symbols, archetypes and rituals present in both these great cultures. The creative process as pursued by each of these artists can be described metaphorically as a record of their individual journeys which, in the exhibition at the Manggha Museum, become a shared journey, a shared path…

The Manggha Museum has the pleasure of hosting two world famous artists, precursors of the sixties avant-garde, whose art continues to flow between Japan, France and Poland. Takesada Matsutani comes to Poland directly from this year’s Venice Biennale. The artist is absolutely Japanese in his minimalist, abstract projects, despite using, for the most part, contemporary and thoroughly European techniques. His monumental installations and vinyl-glue paintings or papers take the viewer into a world of Eastern contemplation and force them to pause in “the now.” Aliska Lahusen, originally from Poland, is an artist whose work betrays a fascination with the Land of the Rising Sun. Not only at the level of philosophical comprehension, or minimalist composition, but also—or perhaps above all—in her skill of using lacquer, which she has mastered to perfection. By lacquering her objects Lahusen gives them an unmistakably unique sheen. Looking at their own reflections in these works, the viewers are transported into a world of tranquility and contemplation. What brought these two together was Paris, where both artists have their ateliers, and of course Japan. Two such different histories and artistic attitudes now meet in a shared stream. We would like to invite you to yield to and flow with the current of these streams, which take their rise from the perennially snowy peak of Fuji.

We also recommend visiting the Shefter Gallery at ul. Jabłonowskich 6 in Krakow, where the exhibition DŌ —Kate Van Houten / Aliska Lahusen / Takesada Matsutani offers a unique opportunity to experience even more art created by the artists mentioned above and to be introduced to exquisite works on paper by Kate Van Houten, Matsutani’s life partner.