34 Facts About Peter Max

Peter Max was born on Peter Max Finkelstein, October 19,1937 and is an American artist of German-Jewish origin, known for using bright colors in his work.

Works by Max are associated with the visual arts and culture of the 1960s, particularly psychedelic art and pop art.

Peter Max was born in Berlin, the son of German Jews Salla and Jakob.

Peter Max loved the colours and the "calligraphic ballet" that he witnessed daily at the Buddhist temple across the street from the family villa.

Peter Max attended school in Mount Carmel, but was often drawing instead of taking notes.

Peter Max's principal suggested to his parents that he be put in art lessons after school, and he began to study under Professor Hunik, a Viennese Expressionist.

In 1956, Max began his formal art training at the Art Students League of New York in Manhattan, studying anatomy, figure drawing and composition under Frank J Reilly who had studied at the League alongside Norman Rockwell.

Daly and Peter Max were joined by friend and mentor Don Rubbo, and the three worked as a group on books and advertising for which they received industry recognition.

Peter Max appeared on The Tonight Show on August 15,1968.

On July 4,1976, Peter Max began his Statue of Liberty series leading to his efforts with Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca to help in the restoration of the statue.

In that same year, Peter Max painted 40 colourful portraits of Mikhail Gorbachev to celebrate his policy of glasnost and efforts to democratize the Soviet Union.

In 1990, Peter Max purchased a collection of Chevrolet Corvettes for an intended art project, but never used them.

Also in 1990, Peter Max was awarded the rights to a massive section of the Berlin Wall, which was installed on the battleship Intrepid.

In 1994, Peter Max designed the artwork for progressive rock band Yes's fourteenth studio album, Talk.

Peter Max has been the official artist for many major events, including the 1994 World Cup, the Grammy Awards, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Super Bowl and others.

In 2000, Peter Max designed the paint scheme Dale Earnhardt drove at the Winston all-star race, deviating from Earnhardt's trademark black car.

Peter Max was the Official Artist of the 2000 World Series, the "Subway Series" between the New York Yankees and the New York Mets.

Peter Max first painted Taylor Swift's portrait as a gift to the singer for her Grammy-winning albums Fearless and Speak Now, and has recently painted new portraits of Taylor Swift to commemorate her worldwide success.

Peter Max is known for using bursts of color, often containing much or all of the visible spectrum.

In 1970, Peter Max published his first book, Poster Book, containing a collection of his artworks in the form of posters, including a portrait of Toulouse Lautrec using his signature printing style, a poster for Apollo 11, and a portrait of Bob Dylan.

The book was such a success that Peter Max quickly released a follow-up in 1971 called Superposter Book.

Peter Max's repeated claims, varying in detail, to have worked on Yellow Submarine have been denied by the production team.

Peter Max includes "mass media" as being another "canvas" for his creative expression.

Peter Max has collaborated with companies to create clothing, homewares, clocks, and other material goods.

Peter Max often uses American icons and symbols in his artwork.

Peter Max's artwork was featured on CBS's The Early Show where his "44 Obamas," commemorating Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States, was debuted.

In 1997, Peter Max was indicted by a grand jury in United States District Court for federal income tax evasion and pled guilty in the Southern District of New York before the honorable Senior United States District Judge, Kimba Wood of defrauding the Internal Revenue Service by having concealed $1,100,000 in income.

Peter Max married his first wife Elizabeth Ann Nance in 1963 and they divorced in 1976.

Peter Max had a nine-year-long relationship with musician and model Rosie Vela that ended in 1985.

Peter Max married Mary Balkin in 1997; she died by suicide in June 2019.

Peter Max is an environmentalist, vegan and supporter of human and animal rights.

In 2002, Peter Max contributed to rescue efforts for Cincinnati Freedom, a cow that escaped from an Ohio slaughterhouse.

Peter Max donated $180,000 worth of his art to benefit the local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, part of a chain of events that finally led to the cow being sent to Farm Sanctuary in Watkins Glen, New York, a permanent home where the cow remained for the rest of her life.

Peter Max has developed advanced dementia, largely the result of Alzheimer's disease.