Victor Vasarely

Work in the collection: Victor Vasarely, Syta, 1988, acrylic on canvas, 100 x 96 cm

Victor Vasarely, who is one of the main representatives of Op Art, is considered one of the inventors of Op Art and as such is present in museums worldwide. With his art-political credo “Art for All”, he expressly addressed all social classes. The didactic centers he founded in Aix-en-Provence, Gordes and Hungary made a valuable contribution to art education with technically sophisticated methods. Large-scale works for public space served to bring art into the living environment, and multiples made affordable through screen printing sequences became part of everyday culture.

Already at the beginning of his work, Vasarely used the methods of geometry and mathematics to construct the image. With the help of progressions, he uses optical means to bring movement into his pictures. Decisive for Vasarely’s artistic development was also the development of a modular set of signs whose punched-out forms could be combined into pictures. From then on, permutations, variations and combinations of his “unités plastiques” form the tools for designing his works. The images are preceded by complex colour-shape analyses. Vasarely’s examination of color and form, surface and space, rhythm and movement still inspires today.

born in 1906 in Pecs, Hungary
1997 died in Annet-sur-Marne
1925-1927 Medical studies in Budapest and art training at the Budapest Polodini-Volksmann Academy
1929 lessons with Alexander Bordnik
1930 First solo exhibition in Budapest
1930 moved to Paris
1930-1934 Works successfully as a commercial artist in Paris
1931 First solo exhibition in Paris
1955 documenta in Kassel
1955 Publication of the “Yellow Manifesto”
1970 Opening of the Vasarely Museum, Gordes
1974 Opening of the Vasarely Museum, Aix en Provence
Numerous solo and group exhibitions worldwide, e.g
2005 Naples Museum, Fla., USA
2005 Musée de Strasbourg, France
2006 Zurich Art Museum, Swiss
2007 Columbus Museum of Art, Ohio, USA
2007 Museum in the Kulturspeicher, Würzburg
2008 La Triennale de Milan, Italy