Artist: Peter Max
Title: Bicentennial Suite
Medium: Set of 4 Color Serigraphs on Paper
Dimensions: 26" x 36.5" each
Year: 1975
Edition: 30/75
Inscription: Signed "Max" on lower front
Documentation: Includes Gallery Certificate of Authenticity
Peter Max's "Bicentennial Suite" is a rare, cohesive portfolio of four color serigraphs created in 1975 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the United States. This complete suite includes the individually titled works "Cosmic Window", "Peach Cinema", "76 Jumper", and "Sunday Afternoon". Each print measures 26 by 36.5 inches, is hand-signed by the artist on the lower front, and is numbered 30 of 75 in the edition. The series represents a pivotal moment in Max's career when his visual language crystallized into a bold and celebratory vision of American identity during the cultural high point of the 1970s.
Max's "Bicentennial Suite" radiates with an electric optimism and poetic symbolism that defined his signature Pop Art aesthetic. Rendered in saturated hues of lavender, coral, powder blue, orange, and rose, the suite embraces a dreamy, otherworldly palette that reflects both the mood of a nation in celebration and the personal transcendence Max often sought to depict. His fluid linework, simplified silhouettes, and whimsical figures combine to create surreal, emotionally evocative compositions filled with movement, joy, and reflection.
Rather than literal depictions of American iconography, Max presents an allegorical interpretation of freedom, unity, and possibility. Floating celestial forms, radiant sunbursts, and meditative profiles suggest a deeper consciousness tied to collective identity and national spirit. The suite embodies a fusion of nostalgia and futurism, where memory and imagination coexist in vivid harmony.
Together, these four works represent a powerful artistic statement of the American Bicentennial through Max's unmistakable lens. Rich with symbolism and visual energy, the suite stands as a testament to the enduring power of Pop Art to interpret culture, celebrate individuality, and elevate the everyday into something universal. With its consistent numbering, limited edition size, and hand-signed gallery certificate of authenticity, this complete set is an extraordinary acquisition for collectors of American art and cultural history.
About Peter Max
Peter Max is one of the most iconic and prolific visual artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, renowned for his bold use of color, psychedelic imagery, and ever-evolving exploration of American pop culture, spirituality, and social consciousness. With a career spanning more than six decades, Max's work bridges fine art and popular culture, elevating graphic design to a form of painterly expression that speaks to mass audiences while remaining deeply personal and symbolically rich.
Born Peter Max Finkelstein in Berlin, Germany in 1937, Max and his family fled the Nazi regime shortly after his birth. His early years were shaped by an unusually global upbringing—living in Shanghai, Tibet, Israel, and Paris before finally settling in Brooklyn, New York in 1953. These formative travels infused his artistic vocabulary with an eclectic mix of Eastern philosophy, Western pop, and a global visual sensibility that would later define his aesthetic.
Max studied at the Art Students League of New York, where he was trained in traditional painting techniques under realist Frank J. Reilly. However, he soon broke from academic realism, channeling his training into a style that embraced vibrant color fields, dreamlike figures, cosmic themes, and kinetic compositions. His work exploded into public consciousness in the 1960s during the counterculture movement, becoming synonymous with the visual identity of the era.
Max's art came to define the psychedelic aesthetic. His “Cosmic ‘60s” style—featuring floating astronauts, celestial bodies, and radiant sunbursts—reflected both the burgeoning space race and a collective yearning for peace and transcendence. In 1967, he appeared on the cover of Life magazine, hailed as a countercultural creative force whose art was reshaping American visual culture.
Over the years, Max expanded his reach into everything from postage stamps and album covers to airplanes and stage sets. He designed posters for the World Cup, the Super Bowl, and five U.S. Presidents—earning him the informal title of “America's Painter Laureate.” In 1994, he was commissioned to create the official artwork for the U.S. Olympic Team, and in 2000, he painted a Boeing 777 for Continental Airlines.
Despite his commercial success, Max remained deeply committed to social and environmental causes. He created posters and artwork supporting Save the Earth, Vote campaigns, human rights, and animal welfare, often donating proceeds to nonprofit efforts. His belief in the transformational power of art to inspire, heal, and activate change remains central to his legacy.
Stylistically, Max has continually reinvented himself, transitioning from psychedelic pop to more painterly, expressionistic modes in later years. His portraits of the Statue of Liberty, produced annually starting in 1976 as a bicentennial tribute, became a recurring national symbol of freedom in his oeuvre. He also developed signature series around Umbrella Man, Liberty Head, Cosmic Jumper, and Love, among others.
Peter Max's work has been collected by museums and celebrities alike, and he remains a fixture in American visual culture. Though legal and personal challenges emerged in the 2010s—including disputes over guardianship and control of his studio—his artistic influence continues to resonate. His images are instantly recognizable, blending a deep-rooted optimism with a lifelong fascination with the mystical, the cosmic, and the celebratory.
Today, Peter Max is widely regarded as a master of contemporary pop art. His vivid palette, joyful motifs, and unshakable belief in the possibility of peace through art have solidified his position as one of the most influential visual storytellers of our time.
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