Liaisons Imaginaires brings together two distinctive artistic voices from Japan and France—Go Yayanagi (1933–2025) and Fabien Verschaere (b. 1975, Paris)—in an exhibition that explores imagination as a site of connection, transformation, and shared humanity. Though separated by generation, geography, and cultural context, both artists construct expansive visual worlds in which inner visions and collective narratives intertwine.

For nearly seven decades, Go Yayanagi has cultivated a practice shaped by both a cosmopolitan life and a deep sensitivity to nature. Having lived and worked in Brazil, Africa, and Paris, he was among the earliest Japanese artists to synthesize international avant-garde currents with indigenous aesthetics. His distinctive language—defined by vivid chromatic planes, biomorphic forms, and rhythmic black-and-white lines—culminates in what he terms Pop-Uki, a poetic fusion of global modernism and personal symbolism. Yayanagi’s works are held in major museum collections across Japan, France, and Brazil.

Fabien Verschaere, a graduate of the École des Beaux-Arts de Paris, creates immersive, dreamlike universes that draw upon personal mythology and shared cultural memory. Working across painting, drawing, film, and installation, he populates his narratives with fantastical, hybrid creatures, weaving together medieval allegory, pop culture, and emotional introspection. His work has been widely exhibited at leading institutions including the Palais de Tokyo, the Grand Palais, and the Museum of Modern Art of Saint-Étienne Métropole, as well as in projects throughout Europe and Asia.

In dialogue, Yayanagi’s ecological, kaleidoscopic visions and Verschaere’s introspective, myth-laden worlds reveal unexpected correspondences. Liaisons Imaginaires proposes imagination itself as a bridge—one that transcends borders, generations, and artistic languages—embodying the enduring vitality of Franco-Japanese cultural exchange.

Marking the first exhibition of Go Yayanagi’s work since his passing in 2025, Liaisons Imaginaires also serves as a concise retrospective, bringing together works from different periods of his long and multifaceted career.