Zebrak 1976

Vasarely made this one, Zebrak, and I can imagine him carefully rendering the zebra stripes, the black lines precise, each one calibrated to create a sense of movement. I can sympathize with this artist, as it feels like a dance between control and chaos. Look at that blue! The high contrast makes your eyes vibrate, as if there is a hidden code, a secret message embedded within the geometry. What if Vasarely was trying to tell us about the tension between order and randomness in the universe? Or maybe he just liked the way it looked! This piece reminds me of Bridget Riley, another artist who explored the power of optical illusions. Artists are always riffing on each other, taking ideas and running with them in new directions. And that’s the fun of it. Painting is a conversation and always open for new interpretations.