Happy Birthday Peter Max

For the past five decades, Max has been part of the fabric of American pop culture, spreading peace, love and his universally recognized art across generations, cultures and eras. His work was and is for all—a democratization of art—from museum walls and painted airplanes to album covers, clothing lines and postage stamp art. On October 19th, Max celebrates his 81st birthday.

Acclaimed for his bold, cosmic art from the '60s and '70s and for his colorful, expressionist paintings that he creates to this day, Max has been the official artist for six Grammy Awards, five Super Bowls, the NHL All-Star Game, the U.S. Winter Olympics, World Cup USA, the Indy 500, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and NBC’s The Voice, among many other notable events in sports, global initiatives and music.

His portraits have honored U.S. Presidents, foreign dignitaries, rock stars and jazz musicians, movie stars and sports icons. He is also acknowledged for his global charity work—being an active environmentalist and defender of animal and human rights, and for helping to bring yoga to the United States by co-founding the Integral Yoga Institute with Swami Satchidananda.

Peter Max captured the zeitgeist of the psychedelic '60s youth movement with his cosmic paintings, posters, serigraphs and popular licensed products. Over his decades long career, with gallery and museum shows around the world, Peter Max became is often called “America's Painter Laureate.”