Victor Vasarely

Victor Vasarely, Markab and Keiho, 1956/1959

A leading pioneer of Op art, Victor Vasarely was renowned for his explorations of graphic configurations based on geometric shapes that simultaneously activate and unsettle the viewer’s eye. His contribution to Edition MAT included two works related to his “kinetic depth pictures,” in which the physical participation of the viewer becomes central. Keiho (right) and Markab (above), Vasarely’s two contributions to the 1959 collection, both contain a black-and-white screen print placed behind a pane of corrugated glass. These works are part of his Noir-Blanc (Black-white) period (1955–63), in which he created images that disturb one’s faculties of perception through stark contrasts of light and dark, investigating the intersection of geometry, depth perception, and movement. In Keiho, for instance, the underlying image is built from a series of black-and-white squares and rhombuses of different sizes. The rhythmic sequence of elements sets the plane in virtual vibration. The kinetic possibility of the composition is heightened by the corrugated glass raised a few centimeters from the picture, so that the smallest movement by the viewer produces an ever-changing suggestion of motion.

Image credits

Victor Vasarely (French, b. Hungary, 1906–1997), Markab and Keiho, 1956/1959. Screen prints on paper in painted wood boxes with corrugated glass, ed. 100, 21 5/16 x 27 1/16 x 3 3/4 in. (54.2 x 68.7 x 9.5 cm) and 27 1/4 x 21 5/16 x 2 3/4 in. (69.2 x 54.2 x 7 cm). Published by Edition MAT, Paris. Kunstmuseen Krefeld, Germany. © Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris. Photos © Kunstmuseen Krefeld–Volker Döhne–ARTOTHEK.