Once inside, visitors are immersed in the shapes, volumes and colors (Room 2) which bring life to Victor Vasarely’s abstract geometric research. Captivated by the monumental works on display, each measuring 6 meters wide and 8 meters high, the visitor explores the 7 cells to discover one by one the artist’s 42 installations. Some move with the visitor in a Kinetic experience (Kinetic Room); others appear to be at the mercy of an invisible breeze… but it is an optical illusion! (Tapestries Room) The game of volume and virtual movement, the joyful polychromic “Planetary Folklore” (Room 4), the visual paradoxes from convoluted perspectives (Gestalt Room 7) endeared by Victor Vasarely… Without even noticing, the visitor is actively participating in his visit. It is through this physical involvement that Vasarely attempts another approach to artwork, abandoning the idea of contemplative observation to offer viewers the opportunity to enter the playful and inventive world of kinetic and optical art.
Even if the installations were created in-situ and exclusively for the Foundation, they all started with a prototype, basis for artwork designed by a plastic artist. After the prototype is completed by the artist either with acrylic paint or glue, it then experiences a “revival.” In changing the dimensions or the materials, the artist gives each area a different atmosphere: aluminum, tapestries, mosaics made of Briare enamel (Vonal Room 3), Delft ceramics (Tlinko Room 3), screenprinted cardboard, Plexiglas… each Room optimizes the countless plastic qualities of the chosen material. Vasarely succeeded in managing the challenge of reconciling traditional crafts with new materials and new resources generated by the “new technology” of the 70s.
