6/6 – 30/11 2025
Vasarely Múzeum | Budapest | Hungary
Yaacov Agam (b. 1928), the Israeli-French artist, is a pioneering figure in the development of kinetic and optical art. This exhibition marks the first occasion on which a significant selection of his works is presented in Hungary, arriving in Budapest from two private collections in Slovakia.
Agam, who exhibited alongside Victor Vasarely in several landmark exhibitions—such as Le Mouvement (1955) at Galerie Denise René in Paris and The Responsive Eye (1965) at MoMA in New York—constructs his compositions through the interplay of geometric form and shifting chromatic relationships. His art offers not only an aesthetic experience but also engages deeply with philosophical and scientific inquiries into perception and movement.
Now celebrating his 97th birthday, Agam remains distinguished by his innovative use of three-dimensional, transformable surfaces that change as the viewer moves—revealing as many as three or four distinct compositions within a single work. This phenomenon is especially striking in his “Agamographs” and other polymorphic works with multifaceted surfaces, a substantial number of which are featured in the exhibition. With each step, the viewer’s perspective transforms: new forms emerge as previous ones disappear. This dynamic encounter invites contemplation of perception itself—suggesting that existence does not guarantee visibility, and that the realm of the unseen may be infinite. Beneath this lies a metaphysical dimension that resonates profoundly with Jewish intellectual and spiritual tradition.
“My intention was to create a work of art that transcends the visible—something that cannot be perceived except in stages, with the understanding that each stage is only a partial revelation, not a perpetuation of the existing. My aim is to show what can be seen within the limits of possibility, in the midst of becoming,” Agam has written.
Like Vasarely, Yaacov Agam achieved international acclaim for his architectural and public art projects. Among his most renowned large-scale installations are the Fire and Water Fountain in Tel Aviv; the Salon d’Agam—a 30-square-metre environment forming part of the permanent collection at the Centre Pompidou in Paris; and monumental mosaics such as those near the Grande Arche in La Défense and at Villa Regina in Miami.
A distinctive feature of this first Hungarian presentation of the celebrated kinetic artist is the inclusion of works by his New York–based son, Ron Agam (b. 1958). His signature holographic multiples, created using lenticular printing and enhanced by digital technologies, expand the family’s exploration of movement and perception into new, technologically driven dimensions.