An illumination apparatus, in particular for a motor vehicle, comprising: at least one laser light source for producing excitation light; at least one wavelength conversion element, which is configured to receive excitation light from the at least one laser light source in the form of an excitation-light light bundle; at least one optical imaging element (30a, 30b, 30c; 31; 32), which images light, which is emitted in the visible wavelength range by the wavelength conversion element, in the form of at least one light distribution or one partial light distribution (LVa, LVb, LVc, LVd, LVe), and at least one beam-deflecting device in the beam path between the at least one laser light source and the at least one wavelength conversion element, characterised in that the at least one beam-deflecting device is designed as an acousto-optic modulator, which comprises a solid medium, which is optically transparent at least to excitation light of the at least one laser light source and through which the excitation-light light bundle is passed, and wherein sound waves having a frequency or a plurality of, in particular, different frequencies can be produced in the solid medium of the acousto-optic modulator - for example by means of a control device, which controls the at least one acousto-optic modulator preferably in accordance with specified or specifiable control parameters -, such that the excitation-light light bundle is deflected to different regions (20a, 20b, 20c; 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e) of a conversion element and/or to different conversion elements in accordance with the frequency of the applied sound waves, wherein the frequencies of the sound waves lie in a range from 80 to 2500 MHz. at least one laser light source for producing excitation light; at least one wavelength conversion element, which is configured to receive excitation light from the at least one laser light source in the form of an excitation-light light bundle; at least one optical imaging element (30a, 30b, 30c; 31; 32), which images light, which is emitted in the visible wavelength range by the wavelength conversion element, in the form of at least one light distribution or one partial light distribution (LVa, LVb, LVc, LVd, LVe), and at least one beam-deflecting device in the beam path between the at least one laser light source and the at least one wavelength conversion element, characterised in that the at least one beam-deflecting device is designed as an acousto-optic modulator, which comprises a solid medium, which is optically transparent at least to excitation light of the at least one laser light source and through which the excitation-light light bundle is passed, and wherein sound waves having a frequency or a plurality of, in particular, different frequencies can be produced in the solid medium of the acousto-optic modulator - for example by means of a control device, which controls the at least one acousto-optic modulator preferably in accordance with specified or specifiable control parameters -, such that the excitation-light light bundle is deflected to different regions (20a, 20b, 20c; 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e) of a conversion element and/or to different conversion elements in accordance with the frequency of the applied sound waves, wherein the frequencies of the sound waves lie in a range from 80 to 2500 MHz.