Peter Max visiting Squirrel Hill gallery
Artist Peter Max in his studio.
Artist Peter Max added his own touches to this Pittsburgh Steelers helmet.
A Taylor Swift “album cover” with the Peter Max touch.
It’s just a few minutes after 1 o’clock in the afternoon and, from the sound of things, Peter Max’s studio is a bustling hive of activity.
Shortly after he comes on the line, he has to deflect three other phone calls. Sometimes, Max summons a disc jockey to his studio to spin some modern and bebop jazz while he works. Though he is well past the age when most of his contemporaries have slowed down or stopped working entirely, Max continues to move relentlessly forward.
“I just signed a whole bunch of prints,” said Max, who will turn 77 Oct. 19. “I love it. I’m doing what I love so much.”
In the 1960s, Max, whose given name is Peter Max Finkelstein, was an avatar of the counterculture, with his colorful, psychedelic imagery finding favor with young people who were enthusiastically embracing rock music, paisley and protest. Far from being the stereotypical artist cloistered in his garret, Max also enthusiastically embraced opportunities to promote his work beyond the art-world cognoscenti, appearing on “The Tonight Show,” landing on the cover of Life Magazine, lending his work to soft-drink makers and selling posters that adorned many a dorm-room wall.
Over the last 40 years or so, Max has gained institutional status, his distinctive style being utilized by the U.S. Postal Service, the Super Bowl, the World Cup, the World Series and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Despite having long since become a recognizable brand, Max still goes out periodically and promotes his work in cities in the United States and around the world. Today and Saturday, Max will be stopping by the Christine Frechard Gallery in Squirrel Hill for the exhibit “Peter Max – A Retrospective, 1960-2014.” He’ll be at the gallery each day from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., signing items and greeting customers.
“My life is always so creative,” he explained.
Just a year after the publication of “The Universe of Peter Max,” which mixes recollections with art, Max says he has another book on the back burner. His other recent projects have included portraits of Taylor Swift, a grand piano for former Beatle Ringo Starr and a poster for Hurricane Sandy relief.
When asked who he thinks the next Peter Max might be in the world of up and coming artists, from Shepherd Fairey, who created the Barack Obama “Hope” poster in the president’s 2008 campaign, to Burton Morris, the Pittsburgh native whose work has also turned up in some unlikely venues, Max demurs. “All those guys are so good. I’m mostly involved in my own world.”
Despite his high commercial profile, multifarious activities, and, from all appearances, bottomless reservoir of energy, Max still likes to keep himself fixed on the fundamentals.
“My most important things are drawing and painting,” he said.
For information on the exhibit, call 412-421-8888 or visit www.christinefrechardgallery.com.