Michael Crichton, bestselling author of such techno-thrillers and adventure fiction JURASSIC PARK, THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN and THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY and creator of the TV series ER, was also an avid collector of fine art.  Four paintings from his collection, all created sometime in the 1960s and worth approx. $30-35 million, will be on display in Britain this week before they go under Christie’s hammer this May.

continue reading "Michael Crichton’s Collection Goes On The Block"

A few days ago I picked up a very hard-to-find THE ART OF PETER MAX, a book filled to the brim with Peter Max posters and paintings. They’re not kidding that it’s a magical book, filled with his visually compelling, mesmerizing, kaleidoscopic work. His use of color and movement is amazing, from his abstract work to his iconic pop-art advertising with its rock and roll sensibilities. (Might have something to do with the many rock and roll stars he hangs with, such as The Beatles, The Rollings Stones, Aerosmith and more, many of whom feature in his work…)

His work has been showcased on everything from watches, to clothes, to postage stamps besides his very well known Peter Max posters, prints and paintings featured in places like the Corcoran Gallery, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, and even The Hermitage in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Once you’ve seen it, it’s VERY hard to forget!

Here are just a few samples of what I found inside this amazing book (my pictures don’t even come close to doing them justice):

If you need a Peter Max poster or painting ‘fix’, this is the book for you with over 350 Full Color plates to peruse. It’s a wonderful resource/biography as, according to dust jacket flap, it was compiled with the help of the artist himself, taking the reader into the backstage of Peter Max’s studio and the celebrity-studded life of an artist who is himself a celebrity. (I find the best biographies are the ones where the subject has co-operated in coordinating the contents.)

Find it on eBay: THE ART OF PETER MAX
Find it on Amazon: THE ART OF PETER MAX

See even more of this great pop artist’s work at his website, including his art for charity. (Check out the neat stuff he did for Earth Day 2007!): PETER MAX ART ONLINE