Born Peter Max Finkelstein in Berlin in 1937, psychedelic Pop art icon Peter Max spent the first part of his childhood in Shanghai after his parents emigrated from Germany to flee the Nazis. While there, Max developed his deep interest in American pop culture — namely comic books, jazz and cinema. Max’s paintings, graphic design, prints and illustrations, which were inspired by these interests, were also informed by his experience with synesthesia, a sensory condition that causes him to see music and hear color.
After relocating to Haifa, Israel, then Paris, where he spent a significant amount of time in sketching classes at the Louvre, a teenage Max and his family finally moved to the United States, settling in Brooklyn. Max enrolled in the Art Students League of New York in 1956, training under Frank J. Reilly, and then the School of Visual Arts. Throughout art school, Max focused on photorealism, but he found the style too restrictive. When he graduated and opened his graphic design studio with friends in 1962, he began experimenting with abstraction and color — just in time for the psychedelic era.
The technicolor works for which Max would become known are characterized by big and bold graphic qualities — not dissimilar to what you’d find in his beloved comic books. Some deeper themes emerged across his work too: Max spent a good portion of the 1960s and 1970s creating his signature cosmic style, inspired by his fascination with astronomy and Eastern philosophies.
For Max and his partners, the graphic design business was highly successful, with commissions rolling in from advertising agencies, magazines and even Hollywood in the form of movie posters. The artist was featured on the cover of Life in 1969, and by the 1970s, he was practically a household name.
Max's body of work extended into product design, including a line of clocks for General Electric, while his domination of the commercial art scene continued for decades. He was commissioned to paint a postage stamp honoring the World’s Fair of 1974 (Expo ‘74); a Statue of Liberty series in which some proceeds went on to fund the statue’s restoration; posters and other advertising materials for major events like the Super Bowl, the U.S. Open and the Grammys; a Dale Earnhardt race car; and even the hull of the Norwegian Breakaway cruise ship.
Commercial activities aside, Max has long been the subject of many museum exhibitions, from his first solo show in 1970, “The World of Peter Max,” at the M.H. de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco to 2016's “Peter Max: 50 Years of Cosmic Dreaming” at the Tampa Museum of Art in Florida. Today, his work belongs to the collections of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and other institutions.
Find original Peter Max lithographs, paintings, signed art and other works for sale on 1stDibs.
Umbrella Man with Profile, Original Mixed Media Drawing, Signed, 18x20
By Peter Max
Located in Aventura, FL
Original mixed media drawing with watercolor on paper. Hand signed by Peter Max. Frame size 18 x 20 inches. Artwork size 12 x 13.75 inches. Artwork is in excellent condition. Cer...
Paper, Mixed Media, Watercolor
Umbrella Man Mixed Media Drawing, Watercolor on Paper, Signed, 17x21 in Framed
By Peter Max
Located in Aventura, FL
Original mixed media drawing with watercolor on paper. Hand signed by Peter Max. Frame size approx 17 x 21 inches. Artwork size 11 x 15 inches. Artwork is in excellent condition....
Paper, Mixed Media, Watercolor
Umbrella Man Mixed Media Drawing, Watercolor on Paper, Signed, 11x15
By Peter Max
Located in Aventura, FL
Original mixed media drawing with watercolor on paper. Hand signed by Peter Max. Frame size 17 x 21 inches. Artwork size 11 x 15 inches. Artwork is in excellent condition. Certif...
Paper, Mixed Media, Watercolor
Umbrella Man #3, Unique Acrylic Painting on Paper, Hand Signed, 1990
By Peter Max
Located in Aventura, FL
Unique, one of a kind acrylic painting on paper. Hand signed upper front and remarqued and signed on verso by Peter Max. Paper size: 12 x 10 inches. Frame size: 17 x 15 inches. A...
Paper, Acrylic
Cosmic Flyer Original Mixed Media Drawing, Watercolor on Paper, Signed
By Peter Max
Located in Aventura, FL
Original mixed media drawing with watercolor on paper. Hand signed by Peter Max. Frame size 17 x 21 inches. Artwork size 11 x 15 inches. Artwork is in excellent condition. Certif...
Paper, Mixed Media, Watercolor
Cosmic Flyer Original Mixed Media Drawing, Watercolor on Paper, Signed
By Peter Max
Located in Aventura, FL
Original mixed media drawing with watercolor on paper. Hand signed by Peter Max. Frame size 16.5 x 18 inches. Artwork size 12 x 13.75 inches. Artwork is in excellent condition. C...
Paper, Mixed Media, Watercolor
Umbrella Man (Retro Suite II), Peter Max
By Peter Max
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Peter Max (1937) Title: Umbrella Man (Retro Suite II) Year: 1994 Edition: A.P.; 300, plus proofs Medium: Silkscreen on Arches paper Size: 11 x 10.5 inches Condition: Excellen...
Screen
"Umbrella Man" Serigraph on Wove Paper by Peter Max
By Peter Max
Located in San Diego, CA
Limited edition serigraph on wove paper (314 of 495) "Peter Max 2015" embossed seal in lower left Colors are very vibrant and bright Hand signed "Max" in pencil in lower right hand c...
Other
Peter Max A Better World Signed Mixed Media on Paper
By Peter Max
Located in Minneapolis, MN
Artist: Peter Max Title: A Better World Medium: Mixed Media on Paper Sheet Dimensions: 14" x 12" Frame Dimensions: 23.75" x 21.75" x 1" Year: c. 2000- 2010 Inscription: Signed "Max" ...
Mixed Media
Cosmic Umbrella Man, Peter Max
By Peter Max
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Peter Max (1937) Title: Cosmic Umbrella Man Year: 2003 Edition: 496/500, plus proofs Medium: Lithograph on Lustro Saxony paper Size: 3.5 x 3 inches Condition: Excellent Inscr...
Lithograph
TWO FLOATING Signed Lithograph, Abstract Balloons, Pop Art, Red Pink Yellow Blue
By Peter Max
Located in Union City, NJ
TWO FLOATING is an original hand drawn lithograph by the renowned American Pop artist, Peter Max, printed in 1991 in an edition of 165, using traditional hand lithography techniques on archival Somerset paper, 100% acid free. TWO FLOATING is a dreamy, New Age style, upbeat abstract composition portraying a colorful, dandy man dressed in a blue striped jacket with yellow sleeves exiting from the left as a group of floating red, yellow, and light blue balloon shapes suspended in the air against a background of warm rosy pink; a white and yellow sphere resting on the ground. TWO FLOATING is an airy, transcendental, happy colored fantasy moment! Print size - 28 x 22 inches. unframed, very good condition, hand signed by Peter Max Image size - 23.5 x 19 inches Edition size - 165 Year published - 1980 Printer - JK Fine Art Editions Co. NY About the artist - German/American artist: b. 1937, Peter Max spent his childhood in Shanghai. From China, the family went to Tibet for a year, and then on to Israel. Peter Max's family's odyssey continued to Paris, and finally, at the age of 16, Max arrived in the United States. Peter Max began his art studies in New York at the Art Student's League and continued at the Pratt Institute and School of Visual Arts. Peter Max, recognised throughout the world and a well-known name in America, is famous for his new age style, cosmic imagery and multi-colored blends. During the late 1960's and early 70's, Peter Max's colorful award winning art reached millions of people. Peter Max's paintings, drawings, sculpture and limited edition graphics have been exhibited in major museums throughout the world. American icons, especially the Statue of Liberty, appear repeatedly in his art repertoire. Returning to the public art scene in the ‘80s...
Lithograph
NEW MOON Signed Lithograph 1990, Pop Art Zen Monk, Umbrella, Meditation
By Peter Max
Located in Union City, NJ
NEW MOON is an original hand drawn lithograph by the renowned American Pop artist, Peter Max, printed in an edition of 150, using traditional hand lithography techniques on archival Arches paper, 100% acid free. NEW MOON is a mesmerizing, transcendental composition depicting a large red moon rising among the clouds, as a long robed Zen monk...
Lithograph
