Zeroman
View Similar Items
Peter MaxZeroman1981
1981
About the Item
Peter Max
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.
- Vintage American Modernist Portrait Abstract Original Signed PaintingBy Barry JohnsonLocated in Buffalo, NYAmerican school abstract painting. Oil on board circa 1990.Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsBoard, Acrylic
- Portrait with MaskBy Anthony LeoneLocated in Buffalo, NYAn original acrylic on paper by emerging contemporary artist Anthony Leone currently featured in the artist's solo exhibition Grape Farm.Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings
MaterialsPaper, Acrylic
- Entrances and ExitsBy Harriet Holden NashLocated in Buffalo, NYHarriet was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and lived with her husband in Park Slope for over 35 years. She attended the Brooklyn Museum School at age 14 where she establis...Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Figurative Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic, Pen, Permanent Marker, Watercolor
- Ancestry BreakdownBy Michael MararianLocated in Buffalo, NYRendering traditionally cheerful images and concepts into frightening, yet humorous, tableaus, Michael Mararian often focuses on children as the last bastion of innocence to explore ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Figurative Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic, Paper
- Portrait of Boo RadleyBy Anthony LeoneLocated in Buffalo, NYAn original acrylic on paper by emerging contemporary artist Anthony Leone which was featured in the artist's solo exhibition Grape Farm.Category
2010s Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic, Archival Paper
- SpiritBy William Y. CooperLocated in Buffalo, NY"Spirit" a bold and thoughtful cubist oil on canvas was painted in December of 2001 by African American artist William (Bill) Cooper. William Y. Cooper was a writer, painter, muralist, illustrator, and art teacher. He moved to Western New York in 1954 from Birmingham, Alabama, to pursue work, and Buffalo has been his home ever since. In 1975, he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University at Buffalo; he was also a state certified art teacher. Cooper woked primarily in oils and acrylics, but also creates drawings on paper. He has painted several commissioned murals and has had more than fifteen one-man shows in Western New York and Ghana, West Africa, and has participated in more than twenty-five group exhibitions since he began his professional career in 1969. His paintings and drawings address both his African heritage and his experience as an American through symbolism and metaphor. He observes, “I am an Afrocentric artist. My worldview is rooted in an African frame of reference and a deep, abiding sense of the creator from whence I draw my inspiration, strength, and a sense of who I am. The use of symbols allows me to explore literal ideas.” Among Cooper’s published works are two children’s books, 77 Jackson Street, Rear and Nakai and the Red Shoes, and a novel for adults, The Mopane Tree. Cooper founded the Afrocentric Artists’ Collective and ran the organization from 1979 to 1981. In 2013 he was designated a “Living Legacy” artist by the Burchfield Penney Arts Center, the latest in a series of honors which has also included awards from the Arts Council of Buffalo & Erie County, the New York State Council on the Arts, and Alpha Kappa Alpha...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Cubist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
$4,000 Sale Price38% Off
- Lost In Paradise - Impasto Thick Paint Original Portrait ArtworkBy Cynthia Coulombe BéginLocated in Los Angeles, CACoulombe-Bégin's dynamic acrylic on canvas works seek to produce a metamorphic interpretation of the artist's inner identity. Her paintings make ample use of contrasting colors to cr...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Acrylic
- Grammy, Pop Art painting by Peter Max 1991By Peter MaxLocated in Long Island City, NYArtist: Peter Max Title: Grammy Year: 1991 Medium: Acrylic on Canvas, signed upper right, with Max studio verso Size: 60 x 48 inches (152.4 x 121.92 cm) Frame: 63 x 51 inches Max wa...Category
1990s Pop Art Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Acrylic
Price Upon Request - All You Need Is Love II, Contemporary Pop Art PaintingLocated in Brecon, PowysWalshe's homage to his 1960s Liverpool roots and the BeatlesCategory
2010s Pop Art Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic, Canvas
- "Venus" Painting 31.5" x 27.5" inch by Gosha OstretsovBy Gosha OstretsovLocated in Culver City, CA"Venus" Painting 31.5" x 27.5" inch by Gosha Ostretsov Acrylic & enamel on canvas Born in 1967, in Moscow Lived in Paris for ten years (1988 - 1998), now lives and works in Moscow....Category
20th Century Pop Art Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Acrylic
- Outlaw, abstract pop art figurative painting, woman in cowboy hat, bright colorsBy Ramona NordalLocated in Dallas, TX“Outlaw” is a bright and powerful painting with a fashionista female figure wearing a cowboy hat, and a bright colorful blue background. It is sure to be a feature piece in any space. Known for her richly evocative color palette and striking portraits, Ramona Nordal...Category
2010s Pop Art Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Acrylic
- Hustler, Frida Kahlo inspired figurative abstract painting, bright color designBy Ramona NordalLocated in Dallas, TX“Hustler FK” is an amazing pop figurative painting inspired by the life and genius of artist Frida Kahlo. Bright and lively 60's design elements, stripes and a peaceful and penetrating gaze stand out on a rich blue background. Artist Ramona Nordal...Category
2010s Pop Art Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Acrylic