Yaacov Agam
Yaacov Agam, Polymorphic Composition, from XXe siecle, 1980
1980

Name: Yaacov Agam, Polymorphic Composition, from XXe siecle, 1980
Brand: Yaacov Agam
Price: 591.15 CHF
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About the Item

This exquisite lithograph by Yaacov Agam (born 1928), titled Composition polymorphe (Polymorphic Composition), from the album Homage to Agam, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Exhibition 1980, Special issue of the XXe Siecle Review, originates from the 1980 edition published by Leon Amiel Publisher, Inc., New York, in association with Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris, and printed by Mourlot Freres, Paris, 1980. Composition polymorphe embodies Agam’s signature exploration of movement, perception, and transformation, uniting geometric rigor with spiritual dynamism in a work that visually evolves as the viewer engages with it. Executed as a lithograph on velin paper, this work measures 12.5 x 9.75 inches. Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued. The edition exemplifies the superb craftsmanship of Mourlot Freres, Paris. Artwork Details: Artist: Yaacov Agam (born 1928) Title: Composition polymorphe (Polymorphic Composition), from the album Homage to Agam, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Exhibition 1980, Special issue of the XXe Siecle Review Medium: Lithograph on velin paper Dimensions: 12.5 x 9.75 inches (31.75 x 24.77 cm) Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued Date: 1980 Publisher: Leon Amiel Publisher, Inc., New York, in association with Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris Printer: Mourlot Freres, Paris Catalogue raisonne reference: Agam, Yaacov. Catalogue raisonné of Prints and Multiples 1950–1990, by Abraham M. Hammacher, 1991, illustration 233. Condition: Well preserved, consistent with age and medium Provenance: From the album Homage to Agam, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Exhibition 1980, Special issue of the XXe Siecle Review, published by Leon Amiel Publisher, Inc., New York, in association with Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris, and printed by Mourlot Freres, Paris, 1980 About the Publication: Gualtieri di San Lazzaro's XXe Siecle (Twentieth Century) was one of the most influential art journals of the modern era, founded in Paris in 1938 as a platform for the greatest painters, sculptors, and writers of the 20th century. San Lazzaro, a visionary editor, critic, and champion of modernism, believed that art and literature should coexist as expressions of a shared human imagination. Under his direction, XXe Siecle became a cultural bridge between Europe and the wider world, publishing special issues devoted to leading figures such as Picasso, Matisse, Chagall, Braque, Calder, Miro, Kandinsky, and Leger. Each edition combined essays by renowned critics and poets with original lithographs printed by the foremost ateliers of Paris, London, and New York, including Mourlot, Curwen, and Universal Graphics, creating a uniquely rich dialogue between text and image. Through XXe Siecle, San Lazzaro preserved the creative spirit of the avant-garde during and after World War II, championing freedom of expression and the evolution of abstraction, surrealism, and modern thought. Over nearly four decades, the journal shaped international taste and defined the intellectual landscape of postwar art publishing. Today, XXe Siecle remains celebrated for its extraordinary synthesis of art, literature, and design, an enduring testament to Gualtieri di San Lazzaro's belief that the visual arts are the soul of the modern age. About the Artist: Yaacov Agam (born 1928) is an Israeli-born master of kinetic and optical art whose revolutionary exploration of color, light, geometry, and perception transformed modern art into a living, participatory experience. Over a career spanning more than seven decades, Agam has fused scientific precision with spiritual philosophy, redefining art as a dynamic encounter between viewer and creation. Born Yaacov Gipstein in Rishon LeZion, then part of British Mandate Palestine, he was deeply influenced by his father, a rabbi and Kabbalistic scholar, whose teachings on continual creation and divine energy inspired Agam’s lifelong fascination with transformation. After studying at the Bezalel Academy in Jerusalem and training under Bauhaus color theorist Johannes Itten in Zurich, Agam moved to Paris in 1951, where he absorbed the modernist innovations of Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray. These visionaries inspired Agam’s pursuit of art that transcends form and time. By 1953, he had established himself as a pioneer with his groundbreaking exhibition at Galerie Craven—the first show devoted entirely to kinetic art—introducing “polymorphic” works that shift in appearance as the viewer moves. Through his meticulous use of vibrant color sequences, geometric precision, and rhythmic balance, Agam transformed abstraction into a meditative exploration of perpetual change. His art merges the structural clarity of Bauhaus design with the mystical energy of Kabbalah, embodying his belief that reality is not fixed but constantly unfolding. Like Picasso, he reinvented visual language; like Calder, he infused sculpture with movement; like Kandinsky, he infused abstraction with spiritual resonance; and like Duchamp, he challenged the static nature of perception. His monumental public works, including the Fire and Water Fountain in Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Square, the Fountains of the Nations at Epcot Center, and Peaceful Communication with the World in Chicago, exemplify his philosophy that art should engage directly with space, light, and human movement. His innovations laid the groundwork for later artists such as Bridget Riley, Carlos Cruz-Diez, James Turrell, and Olafur Eliasson, who expanded on his ideas of perception and interaction. Exhibited internationally in institutions such as the Guggenheim Museum, the Centre Pompidou, and the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Agam’s work continues to inspire generations with its radiant synthesis of science, spirituality, and motion. Standing alongside Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray, Yaacov Agam remains one of the most visionary and influential artists of the 20th century—an innovator who transformed color, space, and time into instruments of human perception. His highest auction record was achieved by Growth, which sold for $698,000 USD at Sotheby’s, New York, on November 14, 2019, affirming his status as one of the most innovative, spiritually profound, and collectible artists of the modern era. Yaacov Agam Composition polymorphe, Agam Guggenheim 1980, Agam XXe siecle, Agam velin paper, Agam Mourlot Freres, Agam collectible print.

Creator:
Yaacov Agam (1928, Israeli)
Creation Year:
1980
Dimensions:
Height: 12.4 in (31.5 cm)Width: 9.65 in (24.52 cm)
Medium:
Lithograph
Movement & Style:
Op Art
Period:
1980-1989
Condition:
Gallery Location:
Southampton, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU1465216597582

Shop All Yaacov Agam

Yaacov Agam

Influenced by his upbringing in Judaism as well as the teachings of the Bauhaus, Yaacov Agam is a pioneer of kinetic art as well as the Op art movement and is often credited with introducing geometric abstraction to his home country of Israel.

Born in Rishon LeZion, Palestine — now part of Israel — the son of a rabbi, Agam found that the spiritual world had a major influence on his art practice, as did the sand dunes he grew up watching as they constantly shifted with the wind. This perpetual movement would inform his work, whereby riveting, prismatic compositions that transform from different perspectives, patterns that generate optical effects and sculptures that move with a passing breeze all reflect the gradual changes in nature.

Agam studied with Israeli painter Mordecai Ardon at the Bezalel School of Art in Jerusalem in the 1940s before traveling to Zurich where he trained with Swiss Expressionist painter Johannes Itten and was inspired by the abstract work of Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky.

One of the innovative techniques Agam developed was the Agamograph, which uses lenticular printing so that multiple images, which are revealed as the viewer moves around the piece, can be seen on a single work. His art has regularly involved the spectator as a participant, whether it’s the 1972–74 room-size kinetic installation he created for the Elysée Palace that’s now in the Centre Pompidou in which a gleaming abstract sculpture is surrounded on all sides by polychromatic lines or it’s public art like the 1986 Fire and Water Fountain in Tel Aviv with circles of vibrant panels that offer varying colors from every angle.

In 2018, the Yaacov Agam Museum of Art opened in Rishon LeZion, showcasing six decades of Agam’s influential work that engages with perception through color, shape and form, from paintings, prints and installations to new experiments in interactive digital art.

By Yaacov Agam

Located in Long Island City, NY

Union III Yaacov Agam, Israeli (1928) Date: 1976 Screenprint, signed in pen lower right Image Size: 27 x 22.75 inches Size: 33 x 28.75 in. (83.82 x 73.03 cm)

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