Op-Art in France
ARTinvestment.RU   17 августа 2008

The Museum of Modern Art in Paris an exhibition «Queen of optical illusions» Bridget Riley, which became a symbol of creativity «sixties swing»

In recent years, the sixties in fashion. Just remember, as a couple of years ago, a fashion-monger is committed to buy a veschichek style «swing London». All the trendy shops filled mini-dress with a strict geometric pattern, shapeless coats with large buttons and big jewelry. Last year, America celebrated the entire 40 th anniversary of the famous «Summer of Love» - to light a lot of books on the aesthetics of hippies and psychedelic art. This year, his «anniversary» France notes: Forty years ago there was «May 68 th». Of course, in honor of these and many other developments, museums and galleries like the very interesting exhibition. Somewhere in California displayed photos of happy hippies and the French student-rebels, somewhere - posters psychedelic groups, and somewhere - work of the representatives of« kontrkultury », which are now considered to be the great modern artists . Major museums pay tribute to currents in art, which in 1960 were at the height of fashion, but in the XXI century came the order forgotten. This summer at the Museum of Modern Art in Paris opened an exhibition devoted to op-Art, or rather, its most important representative - Englishwoman Bridget Riley (Bridget Riley).

First you need to know what is op-art and with his eating. Op-Art - is an abbreviation for the English Optical Art, which means «optical art», or «the art of optical illusions». The paintings, done in this genre, is always an abstract way, this is often a strict geometric abstraction. Many op-art took on Color Field Painting - the variety of abstract expressionism. When the word «abstract expressionism» represent all of Jackson Pollock (Jackson Pollock), violently spray paint on canvas, but it is worth remembering that belonged to this movement, and artists such as Mark Rothko (Mark Rothko) , Barnett Newman (Barnett Newman) and Ed Reinhardt (Ad Reinhardt), famous bleak painting of a solemn« color fields ». But their paintings are static, which can not be said about the paintings of artists op-art. Geometric forms in paintings of representatives of this movement, such as Bridget Riley, Victor Vazareli (Victor Vasarely) and Jesús Rafael Soto (Jesus Rafael Soto), is not «faces on the ground»: they move and flow into each other, light, overflows, and bloat ... live at all. Modern viewers, of course, was not surprised such a sight - his eyes are already accustomed to the floating forms in the computer screensaver. But that oil on canvas ... The movement tried to convey in his paintings, Robert and Sonia Delaunay (Robert and Sonia Delaunay), the Italian futurists, and many who have but to really convince the audience that forms on the canvas and really float overflows, managed only op-art artists. Vazareli, Riley and others developed the idea of such artists as László Mohoy-Nagy (Laszlo Moholy-Nagy) and Josef Albers (Josef Albers), who in his tenure as Bauhaus instructors taught the students of the institute to create optical illusions. Albers, even wrote a book «Interaction of Color», which investigated the perception of human eye color and space. Through this work, as well as the famous series of paintings «Dedication square» German artist considered the father of op art.

One of the most important features of op art - paintings by interaction with the audience. According to Bridget Riley, a work of art «happens», only when the picture is before the eyes of man. By themselves, her paintings (and works by other artists op-art) - it's just pictures, which depict some abstract form. Move and they begin to run only when they somebody looks. This meets one of the main tenets of contemporary art made by Marcel Dyushanom (Marcel Duchamp): Urinal - Urinal it, but when he put in a museum, where he looks and talk about it, this is not the urinal, and a work of art.

Optical Illusions Riley and her colleagues came to the court in the sixties of the last century. Works of art are very op «psihodelichny»: standing in front of them, it is difficult to get away from the idea that you went a little hallucination. Abstract painters op art appeared on the super mini-dresses by Mary Quant (Mary Quant) and came to symbolize a happy frenzy «swing London». The public op-art liked, at all shows the participants of this movement has always been crowded. The ideas of these artists have begun to actively exploit for commercial purposes: Bridget Riley even had to submit to the court at one company, which voznamerilas use her favorite motifs, as images on fabric. Op-art motifs appeared even on the poster for the Olympic Games in Mexico City in 1968! Despite all this, critics were skeptical movement. Writes Ulf Erdmann Ziegler (Ulf Erdmann Ziegler) in the newspaper Die Tageszeitung, while op-art was considered to be «dwarf» against the backdrop of powerful movements as Minimalism, conceptual art, land art and pop art. A long time, pictures and objects movement pylilis in the storerooms of museums. But now they are in large numbers and get exhibits: exhibits on OP-Art, a lot. For example, in New York, Albright-Knox Gallery opened an exhibition investigates the influence of op-art to contemporary art.

Bridget Riley retrospective opens in Paris on 12 June. This is the first major exhibition of the artist in France. Bridget Riley was born in 1931. It begins with a painting in the style of Impressionism, and then drew divizionizm. Creativity Sulfur Georges (Georges Seurat) had a great influence on Riley, it immunized «scientific» approach to art. The early paintings were figurative painter, but by visiting the exhibition of Jackson Pollock, she decided to try an abstract painting. Many artists abstraktsionisty, becoming well known and respected, otkreschivayutsya from their early creations, considering them little school study. But not Riley: in retrospect, in Paris, you can see many works created by it in the beginning of a career. «Immaculate Conception is not», - with irony, she said, bearing in mind the inextricable link between the earlier and later landscape paintings in the style op-art. The main inspirer of creativity Riley - nature, especially the landscapes of Cornwall, where she grew up. According to her, at her picture should look like you look at the forests, mountains, sea ...

The most famous works of Riley made in black and white color, but starting in 1980, it actively explores possibilities of color and color contrasts. In the 1960's said that the pictures of Riley in the audience an opportunity to experience the sensations that are similar to seasickness or parachute jump ...

Bridget Riley said a lot that the roots of creativity lie in a long historical tradition. She wrote about many artists, from Nicolas Poussin (Nicolas Poussin) and Bruce Naumann (Bruce Nauman), as well as supervised the exhibit in the London National Gallery, which exhibited paintings Titian (Titian), Veronese (Paolo Veronese), El Greco (El Greco) , Peter Paul Rubens (Peter Paul Rubens), Poussin, and Cezanne. For the retrospective in Paris, the artist asked of the Museum d'Orse some paintings of Cezanne, Claude Monet, and Sulfur (Claude Monet), but the famous Parisian museum responded to her refusal.

What is the situation with the market works by Bridget Riley? At the moment it is neither more nor less, the author of the most expensive work of living British artists. Recently, at Sotheby's auction of painting «Song 2» left over 4.5 million dollars. Of course, Riley is crazy auction up to the success of its compatriot Lusiena Freud (Lucian Freud), but this is due to the overall situation in the market of art, works by women artists is always cheaper to work for men . Over the past 10 years the price of the work of Bridget Riley grown enormously: Assessment Artprice.com, 100 Euro, it is invested in its creation in 1997, by July 2007 would have become as much of Euro 1231. Higher prices for works by other artists of op-art, too, is impressive: 100 euros invested in 1997 in the works Vazareli, would become the 496 euro, in the work of Jesús Rafael Soto - at 460 euros, while in the work of Josef Albers - to 612 euros. However, over the past six months, prices for works Vazareli, Albers and Soto little «handed».

Retrospective Bridget Riley will continue until September 14.

Julia Maksimova

Sources: paris-art . com , iht.com , mishabittleston.com , signandsight.com , artprice.com , artinvestment.ru