Victor Vasarely

The father of op art. Hungarian by birth and French by adoption, he began as a graphic artist in Paris, studying light, space and material, and from 1944 developed the geometric-constructive abstraction that would become his signature.

The system of plastic units, begun in 1959, is the practical application of his mathematical ideas: geometric forms inscribed in a square module which, by varying line and colour, produce spatial, kinetic and vibratory effect — endless combinations from a few rules.

He was also among the first to treat art as a “collective treasure”, using graphic reproduction to put the work into circulation. In 1976 he conceived the foundation at Aix-en-Provence and, in 1981, the Vasarely Museum opened at the château of Gordes.