1908 - 1997 He was a Hungarian-born artist often acclaimed as the father of Op-art. Born in Pécs, he settled in Paris in the early 1930s, working as a graphic artist. It was there that he did his first significant work, Zebra, consisting of curving black and white stripes, indicating the direction his work would take. It is now considered the first work of the Op-art genre.

Over the next two decades, Vasarely developed his own style of geometric abstract art, working in various materials but using a minimal number of forms and colours. His work won his international renown and he received several prestigious prizes. He died in Paris in 1997.