Artist: Victor Vasarely (French 1908-1997)

Vasarely, Victor Biography

He was born in Pecs and, forsaking the medical studies he had begun in Budapest, attended the Polodini-Volkmann Academy in 1927, then (1928-1929) the Mihely Academy, where Laszlo Moholy-Nagy was one of his teachers and where he encountered the work of Mondrian, Malevich, Kandinsky, and Gropius. In 1930, he settled in Paris, where he initially worked as a commercial graphic artist. He acquired French nationality in 1959.

Victor Vasarely's interest in geometrical abstractions, and the potential of using them to produce striking visual effects, began in the late 1940s. The basic components were squares, circles, and triangles, and horizontal and vertical parallel lines; by drawing lines at varying distances from one another and introducing undulations, Victor Vasarely created the illusion of three-dimensional space. He later introduced vibrant colours, which further enhanced the optical illusion. In their fully developed form, Victor Vasarely's geometrical abstractions produce mesmerizing, almost hallucinatory effects that entrap the eye and often create a very immediate sensation of movement.

Victor Vasarely's oil paintings are some of the most powerful examples of Op Art. He was very influential on younger Op Artists and was instrumental in forming the Groupe de Recherche d'Art Visuel in Paris. A large collection of his work is on display in the Musee Vasarily, which the artist opened at the Ch?teau de Gordes, near Aix-en-Provence, in 1970.

Representative works include Sirius II (1954), Ondho (1956-60, Museum of Modern Art, New York City), and Arny-C (1967-69).

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