An aversion to the Abstract Expressionism genre of painting, led to the rise of the vibrant and colorful Pop Art. In the middle of the 1950’s this form of painting evolved in the United States of America through the works of Andy Warhol, Roy Lichenstein and Tom Wessleman. The contemporary day stalwarts of Pop Art include the name of Peter Max, using his brush from the 1960’s Peter has carved a niche for himself in this form of painting.
He has some incredible works on presidents, popes, the famous musical band Beatles and of course not to forget his ‘Summer of Love’. Incomprehensible and serious attitude of the Abstract Expressionism was replaced by the lovely, vibrant and lively colors of the world. The artist was at liberty to paint his imagination and fill it with all the colors that he possibly can, even though the subject of a pop art painting is always the everyday mundane and ordinary things.
This is form of art that literally brings man back to his roots, makes one realize the importance of even the most negligible object lying around. Peter Max is a true artist of pop art and has held up all the features of it very well in his works. It is thus that he has earned such fame and recognition among the millions living in America. His work of art became the subject for 40 museum exhibitions and it is among his schedule to travel every weekend to different galleries to meet his fans in person and dedicate his works to their collectors.
It was 1970’s that he had thought of staying away from the limelight after having been associated with big names like NASCAR and Coca Cola, but his magnificent work of the portrait of all the 356 firefighters who gave up their life in the blasts of September 11, brought him back to the center stage. His works have been so appreciated that they have been expanded sometimes to the size of a Norwegian cruise ship and sometimes to the size of a postage stamp. Even the Berlin Wall has sections that were worked upon by Peter, he has been rightly praised in the covers of the Times, Newsweek as also the New York Times.
It was he who had the courage to make alarm clocks, chess sets, umbrellas, bed sheets, tennis shoes, scarves, etc, his canvas for a work of pop art. He truly lent a life to the daily life ordinary objects and gave them a respectable place in every artist’s life. It is he who reinvigorated the popular icons of American culture, whether important celebrities or political figures, sport heroes, spiritual gurus; everyone was on their on the imaginative canvas of Peter. This version of Pop art was particularly known as Neo Pop, out of which yet another artistic form emerged known as the Neo Graffiti art. It was all because of Peter Max and his mantra of “Be Creative” that art has thus flourished, even amidst the speed of everyday life.
