Mary Max, wife of psychedelic artist Peter Max, found dead by suicide in New York apartment

nbc ^ | June 11, 2019, | David K. Li

[BenLurkin]

Her husband, Peter Max, a pop icon in the 1960s and 1970s, is now 81 and suffering from dementia. His bright, eye-popping colors made his paintings some most recognizable works of the psychedelic era.

Despite his counterculture aesthetic, he became very wealthy doing commissioned works for the most mainstream of clients such as the NFL, FIFA, the Recording Academy and various media companies.

Mary Max had in recent years been embroiled in family legal battles over the artist and his work, which were chronicled in a recent New York Times piece.

[Kriggerel]

I’m half expecting to see some Blue Meanies in there. :P

[Right Wing Assault]

She used to be a unicorn but decided to have the surgery to become human.

[niteowl77]

Yellow Submarine

Heinz Edelmann was the Yellow Submarine art director and a popular commercial illustrator of the time as well.

[gathersnomoss]

What was I thinking

[Albion Wilde]

L’Wren Scott, Kate Spade, now this. Sucks to be a liberal female in New York City.

[Albion Wilde]

I wouldn't characterize Peter Max as "psychedelic."

Everyone else did, at the time.

[Steely Tom]

Everyone else did, at the time.

I guess it's a matter of opinion. I always thought "psychedelic" art looked more like this:

[Steely Tom]

I forgot the obvious Maxfield Parrish motif.

[VietVet876]

Real 200 octane acid trippin’ psychedelic art is epitomized by M.C. Escher.

[dfwgator]

I always thought LeeRoy Neiman paintings were the ultimate "psychedelic" paintings.

But then again there were against The Geneva Convention. ;)

[Albion Wilde]

There was no one image that was called psychedelic. Psychedelic art was an entire genre derived from the distortions of anything in the field of vision that people experienced when taking mind-altering recreational drugs such as LSD or mescaline, which were in popular use with hipsters when Peter Max started his career.

Psychedelic art was characterized by bright colors, often primary colors and/or fluorescent (Day-Glo) colors, and flat, simplified, cartoon-like images that appeared to float in the air, have distortions or exaggerated features such as lettering that appears to melt, people with legs much bigger than the rest of the body, depiction of whirling colors or shapes, and/or a mandala.

Use of the rainbow or spectrum effect was part of what people claimed to see around the edges of objects or people while taking those drugs, as well as other hallucinations. The spectrum of colors was only later used to signify homosexual political identification. In Peter Max's early work and that of other psychedelic artists, it was drug-imagery related.

[Steely Tom]

I guess I was thinking of what was called “op-art.”

Of course, back then those terms didn’t have too much currency, they were too new.

I think I first read the word “psychedelia” as an art genre sometime in the 1970s, like ‘74 or ‘75. Of course, I was in my late teens then and hadn’t seen too much of the world.

[miserare]

Thank you, everyone. Every good word is welcome and encouraging.

[Albion Wilde]

I guess I was thinking of what was called “op-art.”

I agree; the picture you used combined elements of both, but is closer to Op Art. Actually, it's not really "art", but a graphic design or illustration, and not a very good one. The range of images below should give you more of a comparison:

Images of Op Art

Images of Psychedelic Art

[sparklite2]

Op art gives me a headache.
Psychedelic art gives me a buzz.

[miserare]

God bless you always!

[miserare]

Thank you, FRiend.

[miserare]

Thank you for the encouraging words.