Childhood and early career
One of Peter Max's art galleries, at The Forum Shops at CaesarsBorn in Berlin, Max fled Germany with his parents in 1938 and emigrated to Shanghai, China. The family lived in Tibet, India, South Africa, Italy then settled in Israel in 1948. After attending art school in Paris for 9 months, he then moved to Brooklyn in 1953.
The 1950s
In 1956, Max began his formal art training at the Arts Students League in Manhattan, studying anatomy, figure drawing and composition.
The 1960s
In 1962 Max started a small Manhattan arts studio with friend Tom Daly. Max was commissioned by Riverside Records to create cover art for Meade Lux Lewis. The album art won a gold medal from the Society of Illustrators in 1962. With the use of photographic images as elements of collage, Max organized the Bettman Panopticon exhibition utilizing the antique photo content of the Bettman archives. It was considered one of the most avant-garde exhibitions of the New York graphic arts scene[citation needed]. His interest in Astronomy[citation needed] led to his Cosmic 60s period by way of art posters. He appeared on the Tonight Show in 1968 and on the cover of LIFE magazine on 9-5-1969. Max's 1968 LOVE poster was emblematic of late 60s pop-culture iconography.[citation needed]
The 1970s
In 1970, many of Max's products and posters were featured in the exhibition "The World of Peter Max" which opened at the M.H. de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco. The US Postal Service commissioned Max to create the first 10¢ postage stamp to commemorate Expo 74 World's Fair in Spokane, Washington. July 4th, 1976, Max began his Statue of Liberty series leading to his efforts with Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca to help spearhead the restoration of the statue.
The 1980s to Present
Official artist for many major events including Grammy Awards, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, The Super Bowl and others
