Peter Max, whose colorful, psychedelic pop art captured the optimism of the 1960s “Flower Power” movement and graced everything from postage stamps to cruise ships, has died at the age of 88, his son announced in a written statement Wednesday.
Max passed away on Monday, the statement said. Although the cause has not been revealed, he was suffering from progressive dementia.
Max began his career in graphic design in the 1960s, and his swirly, colorful, instantly recognizable designs were emblematic of the “flower power” art of the era. However, thanks to his prolific output and fun, approachable style, Max’s work remained popular well into the 21st century.
Max was the official artist for the Olympics, Super Bowl, Indianapolis 500, World Cup, World Series, and many other events. His art has appeared on Boeing 777 airplanes and Norwegian Cruise Line ships. His portrait subjects ranged from U.S. presidents to Taylor Swift.
But during his first successes in the late 1960s and early 1970s, his mural-like paintings of flowers, space, and cartoonish figures painted in bright colors like turquoise, orange, and neon green seemed to be everywhere. His poster was taped to the wall of his dorm room. His designs are also reflected in household furniture such as clocks and bedspreads.
He also created the cover for the Manhattan Yellow Pages, a business directory distributed to millions of people. Max himself appeared on the cover of Life magazine in 1969, sporting a wide grin and his trademark bushy black mustache.
“We will remember him for his extraordinary creativity, warmth, curiosity, and ability to see beauty and possibility in everything,” his son Adam Max said in his obituary. “His art has become part of American culture, but the man behind it – the father we knew and loved – is the one we will miss the most.”
Family flees Nazi Germany
Max was born Peter Max Finkelstein in 1937 to a Jewish family in Berlin. They fled Nazi Germany to Shanghai when Max was a baby, then spent time in Tibet, Israel and Paris, settling in New York City when Max was 16. By then, Max had already become “a big fan of American culture,” he said in an interview. It was comics, movies, and “all kinds of jazz music.”
Max studied at the Art Students League, School of Visual Arts, and Pratt Institute in New York. In 1961, he established a graphic design studio with friends. His bold and unique style quickly became popular with advertising agencies, publications, the corporate world, and pop culture.
This led to rapid growth in commercial business. “I would say my job was really, almost exploitative,” he said. “It was in 70 product lines: mugs, bed sheets, dresses, silks, scarves, ties.”
But amid all this success, he says, “what bothered me” was that “I just didn’t paint anymore.” So he temporarily shut down his business in the early 1970s to reconnect with his art. One of his biggest projects after returning to public life was a series of portraits of the Statue of Liberty painted at the White House in 1981 at the invitation of First Lady Nancy Reagan.
Max has overcome various controversies in his personal and professional life. He pleaded guilty to tax evasion in 1997 after the IRS claimed he concealed more than $1 million in income from his art. He was initially sentenced to two months in prison, but was eventually allowed to serve time in a work release program, pay unpaid taxes and a $30,000 fine, and perform 800 hours of community service teaching art at a Harlem school.
In 2015, his family life became tabloid fodder due to correspondence between his second wife Mary Max and his son Adam from a previous marriage. The son and guardian claimed that Mary Max had spent his fortune and had beaten him. She in turn claimed that they took him away from her against his will and stole a painting that belonged to her. He was frail, according to court records.
In 2019, Mary Max died by suicide two weeks after the New York Times published an article detailing the legal battle over his work.
His art had a bright and happy atmosphere.
Those dark doubts contrasted with the relentlessly bright and happy atmosphere that imbued his work. “The colors are strong, sometimes loud, sometimes harsh, sometimes harmonious, but always powerful, and the images are always on the peaceful side of nature,” he said. “I don’t talk about negative things in my paintings. I don’t think about it in my mind or think about it on the canvas.”
In another interview, he summarized: “I see everything through rainbow eyes.”
Accounts of Max’s career sometimes lament his failure to be taken seriously in the art world, but in fact his work has been featured in dozens of museum exhibitions around the world. The Museum of Modern Art in New York owns seven of his works.
Although the art for The Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine” is sometimes mistakenly attributed to Max, the design of the album cover and movie “Yellow Submarine” is officially attributed to the late Heinz Edelman. Max claimed in a 2012 interview that he designed the original “Yellow Submarine” before handing it over to Edelman. But the website for New York’s Park West Gallery, which has long sold Max’s art, described Max’s involvement in Yellow Submarine as an “initial consulting assignment.”
However, Max was friends with the Beatles and many other celebrities. He also had a deep interest in Eastern spirituality. He brought “Swami” Satchidananda Saraswati to the United States to help spread yoga here.
Max’s first marriage to Elizabeth Nance ended in divorce. In addition to his son, he has a daughter, Libra Astro.
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Beth J. Harpas, a former Associated Press staffer, was the lead author of this obituary. Associated Press staff writer Gene Johnson contributed to this report.