Created by British fine artist Jay Fortune, the estate-authorized portrait took more than a year to complete, with painting sessions taking place from 2025 through the summer of 2026.
The finished work was made available to collectors on September 18 following a private viewing for members of the archive’s Collector Circle.
The Estate of Max Maven has warmly endorsed the portrait, describing it as “magnificent” and saying that it “really captures Max.”
That is no small compliment when the subject is a performer with such a distinctive appearance and personality.
Max Maven, who died in 2022, was one of the most recognizable and influential figures in modern mentalism. His commanding presence, sharply defined visual style and intelligent approach to mystery helped distinguish him from generations of other performers.
Fortune’s portrait attempts to capture more than Maven’s physical likeness. The artist created the work with an ethereal quality intended to reflect Maven’s mysterious and almost otherworldly stage presence. Its surrounding textures blur the boundary between the subject and the atmosphere, echoing the themes of perception, imagination and uncertainty that Maven explored throughout his career.
The portrait is available in two editions. A 22-by-22-inch hand-embellished edition is limited to only 15 copies worldwide. Each is individually worked, signed and numbered by Fortune and includes a certificate of authenticity. At the time of publication, the artist’s website reported that 12 of the 15 had already been placed with collectors.
A smaller 12-by-12-inch edition, limited to 250 copies, is also available.
The portrait is part of the ongoing Jay Fortune Conjuring Archive, a collection of fine art created to document the people, personalities and history of modern magic. Previous works have helped demonstrate how portraiture can preserve something that photographs and written biographies do not always capture—the feeling of encountering a legendary performer.
Max Maven spent his career using mystery as his artistic medium. This new portrait offers another way for that mystery, influence and unmistakable presence to be remembered by future generations of magicians and collectors.
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