Tilla II 1959

Curator: Let’s take a look at Victor Vasarely’s "Tilla II," a compelling acrylic on canvas completed in 1959. Its monochrome geometric shapes grab your attention immediately. Editor: Whoa, it’s like a puzzle falling apart and coming together all at once. The black and white is so stark, almost aggressive, yet the arrangement is weirdly soothing. I'm getting an 80s video game vibe here, which I kind of dig. Curator: The stark contrast certainly adds to its power. Vasarely, as a key figure in Op Art, was deeply invested in how geometric abstraction could manipulate visual perception. He sought to democratize art by creating accessible, engaging works. Editor: Accessible, huh? My gut tells me it's more than meets the eye. I think there's a conversation happening about the rise of mechanization in the post-war period and how machines themselves break our habits of perception. Does this resonate with the idea that we're entering a period of digital abstraction, too? Is my phone screen really so different than what Vasarely was aiming to show us? Curator: That's astute. Remember, Op Art emerged during a time of significant technological advancement, with corresponding utopian and dystopian anxieties. "Tilla II," as with much of Vasarely's oeuvre, can be seen as a reflection on these anxieties, inviting viewers to contemplate the relationship between art, technology, and the shifting realities of human experience in an increasingly automated world. Museums provided a place to discuss the potential ramifications of technology during the Cold War era, through such images as these. Editor: I'm glad we’ve talked this through, the longer I stare, the less steady my own perception of form seems. It's definitely unsettling and thought-provoking stuff. It asks viewers to surrender to its geometry. Curator: Exactly, "Tilla II" demonstrates the unique power of visual art as a portal, of sorts, to deeper, social understandings of how human perception is affected in this technological era.