In Its Fiftieth Year, The Fondation Vasarely Eyes A Transformative Restoration
41March 17, 2026
Aix-en-Provence, France, is home to theFondation Vasarely, a museum dedicated to preserving the legacy of the Hungarian-French Op Art pioneer,Victor Vasarely. The museum iscelebratingits fiftieth anniversary this year, amid a battle to restore both the architecture of its premises and the monumental artworks inside it.
The foundation was established by Victor Vasarely in 1966 to support his vision of an “art for all,” its building was inaugurated in 1976. Located on a hilltop, its black-and-white facade recalls deconstructed dominoes, cut up and folded likekirigami. It was among the first artist-founded institutions of its kind in Europe. Upon Vasarely’s death in 1997, legal disputes with the now-defunct Museum Vasarely emerged over the works held in the foundation, and these conflicts are still ongoing.
Vasarely’s grandson Pierre Vasarely took over the reins as CEO in 2009, and although the museum’s building was designated as a historic monument in 2013, neglect had taken its toll. Pierre Vasarely told The Art Newspaper: “There was no heating, no air-conditioning. The roof leaked.” According to him, nothing had been maintained and the building had fallen into disrepair.
The Fondation Vasarely was able to secure remarkable amounts of funding from several levels of government, which covered 85 percent of the €12 million restoration budget. They were able to fix the building’s pyramidal skylights and install new air-conditioning and humidity control systems.
Restoring the art inside the building has proven to be a more complicated task. While more than half of the forty-two artworks have been restored, the cost of doing this for the remaining twenty pieces is high, with each restoration costing between “€100,000 and €120,000,” according to Pierre Vasarely. At such a critical juncture, the museum is launching a large exhibition of Victor Vasarely’s work from June 12 to November 1, honoring the museum’s fiftieth year, and the artist’s 120th birth anniversary. The Fondation Vasarely is betting on 2026 as the year that will change the institution’s fortunes.