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.
“Statue of Liberty”
By Peter Max
Located in Warren, NJ
Original Peter max mixed media . In good condition. Measures 24x22. No coa but has park west original gold frame. Some minor wear to frame
Mixed Media
$4,000
“New Moon”
By Peter Max
Located in Warren, NJ
This is an Peter Max mixed media “new moon” acrylic on paper . Measures 47x44. Condition is good some minor frame wear. No coa but has registration code on the back from park west.
Acrylic
Untitled (Manhattan)
By Peter Marks
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Photo montage in five sections juxtaposing light and dark mounted to support sheet. Unsigned Provenance: Estate of the artist Support sheet dimensions: 14 x 17" Peter Marks...
Mixed Media, Photographic Paper
$8,000
H 36 in W 48 in
"1974, Syl and Big Stroll" Paper collage of vintage interior with figures
By Shawn Theodore
Located in Philadelphia, PA
"1974, Syl and Big Stroll" is an original piece by Shawn Theodore made from hand-crafted paper collage and acrylic and archival ink on Epson Hot Press Natural paper on wood panel. Theodore delves into the specific experiences of African American families, capturing a longing for lost photographs, missing heirlooms, and vanished archives. Using a blend of traditional portraiture, found photographs, paint, paper, pencils, and digital manipulation, Theodore creates archetypes representing hypothetical family members, spiritual guardians, and ancestors. These boldly crafted archetypes inhabit an imagined macro-family album, offering a unique perspective on portraiture, connection, and community. Theodore's work aims to deepen spiritual connections and encourage personal introspection. This pieces measures 36”h x 48”w and comes with a gallery-issued Certificate of Authenticity. Shawn Theodore (b. 1970) was born in Germany to American parents from Philadelphia, and currently lives and works in Philadelphia. Theodore was awarded the prestigious PDN’s 30 New & Emerging Photographers to Watch (2019), the Getty Images / ARRAY ‘Where We Stand’ grant, and a grant from the Knight Foundation for ‘A Dream Deferred’. Theodore was a two-time nominee for the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage Fellowship and a nominee for the Magnum Foundation Fund. He is an Associate Adjunct Professor at the University of the Arts, a trustee of The Print Center, a trustee of the Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, and a former trustee of the Philadelphia Photo Arts Center. Theodore was announced as a two-time nominee of The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage Fellowship and a nominee of the Magnum Foundation Fund in 2018. In the following years 2019 and 2020, he was awarded the PDN's 30 New & Emerging Photographers to Watch and AI-AP American Photography 35. He has had several solo exhibitions and is included in several group exhibitions. His work is held in the permanent collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia; the collection of the Philadelphia Library, Drexel University's Center for Black Culture, the Mennello Museum of American Art, Orlando; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; the Walker Center, Minneapolis; the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Washington D.C.; the Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas; and the Legacy Museum, Montgomery, among others. Artist...
Paper, Archival Ink, Acrylic, Wood Panel
Tricase II
By Beth Moon
Located in Sante Fe, NM
In 2015 I visited many ancient olive groves in Italy. The Province of Lecce is known for having the oldest trees. The groves, only accessible by stone paths or mule tracks, give a se...
Mixed Media, Archival Pigment
"Woman" Photography on paper 52" x 42" framed
Located in Carmel, CA
The photograph comes with a certificate of authenticity and a letter of appraisal. Lucile - 'Women' Photography on paper. framed.
Canvas, Acrylic
Tic Toc
By Lori Vrba
Located in Sante Fe, NM
Lori Vrba's "Tic Toc" is a mixed media work created with encaustic photographs, silver gelatin test strips, test tubes, in a vintage box . "My recent foray into assemblage work feel...
Mixed Media, Encaustic, Photographic Paper
$950
H 24.25 in W 18.25 in D 1.5 in
Autumn Tamaracks & Sunset (Framed Aerial Lanscape Photograph of Green Forest)
By John Griebsch
Located in Hudson, NY
Framed aerial landscape photograph of pine green forest and warm yellow sunset ''Autumn Tamaracks & Sunset' Archival digital print, Edition of 25 Image size 18 X 12 inches unframed ...
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Digital Pigment, Acrylic
Outlaw, 2008
By Anne Arden McDonald
Located in Sante Fe, NM
Vintage Watch, Mixed Media, Unique
Mixed Media
untitled
By Peter Marks
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Unsigned Provenance: Estate of the artist Dimensions: Sheet: 17 x 14"; Image: 5 5/8 x 3 3/4" Peter Marks (1935 -2010) Peter Marks was born in New York City on January 18, 1935. A lifetime New Yorker, Marks graduated from the High School of Music and Art in 1952 and Amherst College in 1956. After a brief stint as a graphic designer in publishing, Marks became a private art dealer and opened his gallery Peter Marks Works of Art, Inc. in 1960. During this time he specialized in the sale of Southeast Asian and Islamic antiquities and made many contributions to the field both as a dealer and an advocate of his profession. Above all, Marks was motivated by a strong desire to find great art and make it available to large audiences. After retiring from art dealing in 2002, Marks transformed his Manhattan gallery space into a studio where he drew prolifically and painted large non-objective canvasses. This time in his studio was a happy one for Marks, who viewed this period of his life not as retirement, but rather fulfillment, a fact that is confirmed by passionate artistic output in the years leading up to his passing in 2010. In 2012, Thomas French...
Mixed Media, Photographic Paper
Collective Liberation
By Elsa Marie Keefe
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Collective Liberation is comprised of a photograph, acrylic paint and resin. The base materials for the work are a wooden paneled canvas that supports the adhesion of a rolled photog...
Resin, Found Objects, Acrylic, Wood Panel, Photographic Paper
$7,500
H 48 in W 36 in D 2 in
Thelma Appel French Hill Spring terrific unique signed landscape painting Framed
By Thelma Appel
Located in New York, NY
Thelma Appel French Hill Spring, 2010 Acrylic and Oil on Canvas painting Hand signed and titled on the back Frame included This unique painting is signed, titled and dated on the bac...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
$5,000
H 19.69 in W 27.56 in D 1.58 in
Summer storm over the blue Danube / Acrylic, photograph on canvas / 50 x 70 cm
By Tadeusz Zych
Located in Kraków, Województwo małopolskie
The painting "Summer storm over the beautiful Danube" is a combination of the author's photograph of the statue of Johan Strauss' son, taken in Vienna, c...
Acrylic
$1,750
H 10 in W 10 in
ELLA Assemblage Artwork, Contemporary Acrylic on Wood, 21st Century
By Jim Houser
Located in Philadelphia, PA
"ELLA" is an original assemblage artwork by Jim Houser measuring 10" x 10". Jim Houser was born in 1973 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the city where he currently resides. He is a s...
Wood, Found Objects, Acrylic