Pierre Alechinsky (born 19 October 1927) is a Belgian artist. He has lived and worked in France since 1951. His work is related to tachisme, abstract expressionism, and lyrical abstraction. Pierre Alechinsky is a founding member of the CoBrA art movement. Known early on in his career for his skills as a draughtsman, Alechinsky studied as an illustrator and typographer at the National School of Architecture and Decorative Arts in Paris from 1944 to 1946. While in Paris, Alechinsky met the poet and artist Christian Dotremont, and, shortly after their meeting, the two formed the CoBrA artistic group together with fellow artists Karel Appel and Asger Jorn. The name ââ¬ÅCoBrAââ¬Â was derived from the membersââ¬â¢ hometowns: Copenhagen, Brussels, and Amsterdam; the group was formed on the basic principle of the freedom of color and form in art.