Through both his arts works and his many theoretical works – for example, he also thematically examined different types of optical sensory illusions through his own works – he is deservedly referred to as the father of optical painting. It may be easier to identify the genre through another great figure in op art, Maurits Cornelis Escher, who is famous for his impossible geometric forms and perspective absurdities. Vasarely is the most influential, while MC Escher is the most popular artist of this genre based on optical illusion. Other members of the genre include Bridget Riley, Marina Apollonio, Omar Rayo, Jesús Rafael Soto, or Vasarely's son, who became known in his own right by the artist name Yvaral – designing, among other things, Renault's famous logo.
One of the best exhibitions in Pécs
The experimental art they represent had a remarkable impact on both kinetic sculpture and subsequent digital genres. The wireframe artefacts of today’s so-called perspective sculpture also draw inspiration from here. These creations provide a varying spectacle depending on how the viewer moves. These few examples clearly demonstrate the serious impact the genre had on other branches of 20th century art or the development of everyday visual culture. Vasarely’s inventive style become integrated into day-to-day life almost immediately and had a particularly big impact on fashion. This was made possible, among other things, by the fact that Vasarely developed his own serigraphy workshop and perfected the technique of reproduction to make artistic, high aesthetic quality available at a relatively low price, not only to collectors but also to the average person. At the Pécs exhibition, hundreds of screen prints, tapestries, sculptures and graphics showcase the artist's different periods, from early Bauhaus-influenced graphics to decorative textiles, from the world-famous Zebra to the gradual abstraction of the organic or constructive visual experience into geometric, black-and-white constructive works. The interesting thing about the exhibition is that, in addition to Vasarely's works, it presents as a separate unit the 1930s and 1940s works of the artist's wife, Klára Spinner, as well as the kinetic works of Jean Pierre Vasarely. In addition to his own and the family’s works, you can also admire pieces from the likes of Francois Morellet, Jean Gorin, Hans Arp, Günther Uecker, Nicolas Schöffer and Jesús Rafael Soto. This is Vasarely’s own collection from his contemporaries. The museum itself is one of the most visited and well-known exhibition grounds in Pécs. In the nearly half a century since its opening, it has welcomed about 4 million visitors. If you’re in town, you shouldn’t miss this exhibition.