Victor Vasarely (French, born Hungary, 1906–1997). Vega-Nor, 1969. Oil on canvas, 78 3/4 x 78 3/4 inches (200 x 200 cm). Collection Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York; Gift of Seymour H. Knox, Jr., 1969 (K1969:29). © Fondation Vasarely / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris.
Victor Vasarely was a Hungarian-French artist who provided the world with some of the most distinctive images and optical effects in twentieth-century art. He is considered one of the first artists to create Op art. He is best known for his grid-like paintings and sculptures of the 1960s onwards. These play with the reader’s sense of visual form by creating illusory, flickering effects of depth, perspective, and motion. The result is a fun interaction with the art where the viewer tries to decipher the difference between what one can see and what is actually there. In this lesson, you will use some of Vasarely’s techniques to learn about and create a piece of Op art, and experiment with line and warm and cool colors to achieve the illusions.
