Shepard Fairey

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    In London, a 15-Foot Flower by Shepard Fairey Advocates for Environmental Justice

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    All photos by Jonathan Furlong, courtesy of the artist ObeyGiant, shared with permission

    In London, a 15-Foot Flower by Shepard Fairey Advocates for Environmental Justice

    October 11, 2024

    ArtClimateSocial Issues

    Grace Ebert

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    At 36 Boundary Street in London, a bold new mural rises 15 feet above the street. Anchored by scales atop a small seedling, the public artwork by Shepard Fairey addresses environmental justice and our responsibility to care for the planet.

    “I believe that our individual and collective actions will dramatically impact current and future generations, be it for the better or for the worse. It is our responsibility as the citizens of Earth to protect it,” the artist said.

    A series of workshops with young Londoners inspired the bright, graphic motif. The group was interested in expanding access to green space and reducing air pollution, and given the recent convening of the United Nations General Assembly focusing on international cooperation, connection between countries and cultures was top of mind.

    The project was produced by Charlotte Pyatt, Simon Butler, and Migrate Art, which has raised more than £2.1 million in the last decade through creative projects in refugee camps in France and Northern Iraq, with the Indigenous Xingu people in the Amazon, and in collaboration with U.K.-based charities feeding London’s unhoused population.

    Find more from the artist on his website.

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      Artist Interview: Shepard Fairey

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      Shepard Fairey: I’m Shepard and I’m an artist, and an activist best known I guess for my Obey Street Art and Clothing line, and of course the “Hope” Obama poster that I made as a grassroots tool to aid the Obama’s campaign. Or maybe the, “We the People” posters that I created for the Women’s March on Washington.Matthew A. Eller: Perfect, and can you tell me a little about this beautiful Blondie Print you are currently signing?Shepard Fairey: Well I have worked with Lisa Project on a few different projects over the years including in 2016 painting this Blondie mural depicted in this print. So when the opportunity came up to paint this image on a wall at Bleeker and Bowery, right across from where CBGB’s used to be, I couldn’t turn it down. I absolutely loved the idea because my first solo art show in New York in 1998 was at the CBGB’s Gallery, plus I love all the music that came out of CBGB’s like The Ramones, Television, Talking Heads, Bad Brains played there a lot, and of course Blondie.Additionally, in 2016 I worked on Blondies album package for their “Pollinator” album, and the flower and the bee at the top right corner of the mural is from that album art. I was extremely excited to do something that tied in with a band like Blondie that I loved historically, but who I had also worked with recently. So this print is based on the mural that I previously painted across from CGBG’s, which is now coming down and I’m replacing it with a new mural of the one and only Bad Brains. It’s just great that this mural is now being memorialized with this really beautiful large format screen print by Gary Liechtenstein with the proceeds helping the LISA Project fund future murals and events. And just in time because as of this morning it’s just a yellow wall. We already started on prepping for Bad Brains!Matthew A. Eller: How is this new Bad Brains mural going to be different then the old Blondie one?@obeygiant, @glenefriedmanShepard Fairey: So this Bad Brains mural is basically an update to the first Bad Brains collaboration I did in 2008. In that image three out of the four photos were based on pictures taken at CBGB’s. Only the HR image in that 2008 collaboration was photographed at the Whiskey in LA. So to keep it geographically relevant, I talked to Glenn (Friedman) and said, “You know, why don’t we re-illustrate HR? But Glenn was so partial to his shot of HR that I ended up re-illustrating two of them. So this will be something special when it’s finished that people haven’t seen exactly before, but it’s definitely reminiscent of the 2008 piece.Matthew A. Eller: Were Bad Brains your first choice for the mural?Shepard Fairey: Well, my first choice after Blondie , but I also love, the Talking Heads, I love Richard Hell and the Voidoids who were all in the running, but I think that having an opportunity to remind people that Bad Brains are the first all black hardcore band (honorable mention off course to A Band Called Death the first all black punk band). And even though they’re from DC originally, that first album cover with the Capital being struck by Lightning was recorded on the Lower East Side of Manhattan and they played CBGB’s all the time. So they are as important as anybody who was part of that history of the first wave of New York punk. They were a very crucial band. They heavily influenced that next wave of New York hardcore bands like the Cro-Mags, and Agnostic Front to name just a few. All of those bands were massive fans of Bad Brains. So I feel honored to get to paint a mural to represent that era.Matthew A. Eller: I know that skateboarding culture and Punk Rock has been a huge influence on your work. For this new Bad Brains mural you used Glen E. Friedman’s Bad Brains photos as we just discussed a bit, and he got his start as a photographer for Thrasher and later captured every punk band and hip-hop artist you can imagine. Can you talk a bit about this fusion of skateboarding culture and your art?Shepard Fairey: I grew up in South Carolina and skateboarding was my gateway to creatively as well as my social life. Skateboarding was rebellious, it was creative, just like street art. Street art was re-enacting things on landscapes that weren’t supposed to be written on. But punk was just as in your face if not even more outspoken. It was political and I became very interested in it especially later when I started doing my street work, I was massively influenced to say the least. I already at this point in my life was skateboarding, making t-shirts, stickers, skate zines, and putting up flyers with glue. So I thought, well I wanna do work on the street… but I want to do it with techniques that I already have been using and refining. So pasting up posters seemed to fit the best.Matthew A. Eller: There also seems to be a common thread between the two because skateboarding and street art both involve objects that you need to destroy to create something new. More

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      in Street Art

      A New Mural by Shepard Fairey in Santa Monica

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      Shepard Fairey is American street artist and graphic designer best known for his Barack Obama “Hope” poster. One of the most famous and influential street artists of the contemporary era, his works are displayed at several prestigious museums all over the world including the Smithsonian, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Artistically inclined from a young age, he attended the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and started his first business venture, Alternate Graphics, while still a student there. Initially he created stickers, t-shirts, skateboards, and posters, which he sold via the mail order catalogs that he distributed. Along with his friends he created paper and vinyl stickers and posters with an image of the wrestler André the Giant which became very popular and earned him considerable attention. And this was just the beginning. Over the next few years his popularity grew manifold and he became an internationally renowned figure when he designed the Barack Obama “Hope” poster during the 2008 U.S. presidential election. Even though acknowledged to be a highly creative and innovative person, he has also often been accused of plagiarizing other artists’ work.A new mural was made for The Pierside Hotel in Santa Monica.Take a look for some progress shots that Shepard and his team worked on and check back with us soon for more updates. More

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      in Street Art

      “Street Chronicles” Group Exhibition at UrbanBreak, Seoul, South Korea

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      Urban & Street Art Fair, URBAN BREAK 2022, marks its third anniversary this year. URBAN BREAK drew attention with 15,000 people attending in 2020, the first year alone. Last year, despite COVID-19 at its peak, 40,000 people visited the fair, thereby solidifying its status as one of the most prominent fairs.Rom Levy, director of StreetArtNews, co-planned the Special Exhibition of International Street Artists. Entitled Street Chronicles, the exhibition is showcasing the works of artists who were the pillars of street art techniques, concepts and different styles.STREET CHRONICLES retraces a side of Urban Art history bringing the streets of NYC and London to Seoul.Street art was considered vandalism when protesters during wars and political corruptions used the walls of their cities to comment on political and social issues with slogans and graffitis. What was initially regarded as vandalism has since become a significant art form. Murals and other forms of street art are renowned for their beautification of cities, raising awareness, and standing as witnesses to history.This proposal includes Banksy, whose identity remains anonymous to the day. His politically charged works provoke alternative viewpoints, encouraging revolution in the art world, making him one of the most controversial street artists. Banksy’s work has been breaking down the boundaries and expectations of street art critics, using many different street art mediums and styles. Banksy began his graffiti practice inspired by Blek Le Rat, one of the most prominent artists in Street Art. Inspired by what he saw in New York during his visit in 1971, Blek Le Rat started creating artworks across the streets of Paris in 1981. He primarily used stencils in his practice. His first stencils were black rats running along the walls throughout Paris. In 1983 he began to paint life-sized stencils, which became his trademark alongside his rats and have influenced generations of street artists worldwide.Also included are other notable Urban artists such as D*Face, Shepard Fairey and Invader, who all contributed to the development of the art styles and mediums. Alongside artists from the newer generation who weave the connection between street art and the wave of the new contemporary, such as Roby Dwi Antono, Andrew Hem, Lonac and Andrew Schoultz. Their work bridges contemporary art aesthetics with illustrative figuration. For example, Andrew Hem incorporates atmospheric and richly textured narratives in a vivid palette of twilight blues invigorated by fields of deep red and specks of golden light. Spirits are evoked through the visionary presentation of remembrances and dreams of his haunting impressions of civilisation and landscapes. While Andrew Schoultz’s work has a visual approach to social and political commentary. His enormous murals, paintings, installations and sculptures are heavily patterned, creating an intense and mesmerising vision of current events.Street art is dedicated to bringing art to the people, raising awareness about political and social issues, and portraying the truth of reality.‘I want the characters of the paintings to walk out of the museums to give them back to the people of the city.’ -Blek Le Rat.Tickets for URBAN BREAK 2022 are sold at KRW 20,000 for general admission and at KRW 100,000 for VIP admission. Those who have purchased VIP tickets can enter early from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm prior to the exhibition to be open on July 21st, 2022, at 3:00 pm. Venue will be at COEX Hall B, Seoul, South Korea.You can book your tickets to this year’s Urban Break at their website. More

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      New “Artiste” Deck by Shepard Fairey OBEY x UNO Collaboration

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      Today, UNO #1 card game in the world is announcing its latest collab with contemporary artist, activist and illustrator Shepard Fairey for the release of an all new UNO deck made with sustainable materials: UNO Artiste Series: Shepard Fairey.The deck is designed hand-in-hand with UNO at Shepard’s LA studio (Studio Number One), the UNO Artiste Series: Shepard Fairey deck features new, original environmentally-themed art in Shepard’s iconic graphic style.The will deck will be available exclusively on Mattel Creations on Friday, July 30 at 12pm ET, 9am PT. SRP: $20.00UNO Artiste Series: Shepard Fairey features new, original environmentally-themed art in Shepard’s iconic graphic style and design elements including:

      A consistent illustration style and limited color palette, mirroring Fairey’s signature style that fans have come to love.
      In keeping with Fairey’s fascination with repetition in his own art, the deck includes the phrases “Card Game” and “Artiste Series” repeated on the front of the package.
      Shepard Fairey’s wife, Amanda Fairey, is prominently featured in the deck.
      Four special two-sided cards that create two different art pieces when put together.
      The UNO Artiste Series deck is made with sustainable materials, including recyclable cards, a paper belly band around the cards, wood-free paper for the instruction sheet and all cellophane wrapping removedAs a paper-based product, UNO has always been committed to creating a low-waste and reusable card game for all people to enjoy. This deck follows the launch of UNO Nothin’ But Paper, the first fully recyclable UNO deck without cellophane packing materials, part of UNO’s plan to remove the cellophane from from 100% of standard, paper-based decks entirely in 2021 and Mattel’s goal to achieve 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastic materials across all products and packaging by 2030. More

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      New Mural by Shepard Fairey in Dubai, UAE

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      Contemporary American artist Shepard Fairey recently worked on a new mural in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. On the occasion of his solo exhibition at Opera Gallery, the American artist brought to life a beautiful piece of work in Dubai Design District.b-sm = none; sm > 728×90;b-sm = 300×250; sm > none;As usual with Obey Giant, he brought to life some of his signature imagery that will be enjoyed by the local residents for years to come.The mural produced by SAN Projects was completed in a record four days using Spray and Acrylic paint. Images by Alina Khamatova More

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      in Street Art

      Shepard Fairey “AK-47 Lotus” & “AR-15 Lily” Print Release – January 7th

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      American contemporary street artist Shepard Fairey will be releasing a new print edition entitled “AK-47 Lotus” & “AR-15 Lily” this January 7th.

      b-sm = 300×250; sm > none;

      “These images are inspired by Vietnam War protesters who would put flowers in the gun barrels of the National Guard who were brought in to suppress their protests for peace. I’m a pacifist, whether that means finding diplomatic solutions to prevent and avoid war internationally or finding diplomatic solutions to prevent and avoid gun violence at home. I’m not anti- Second Amendment, so trolls can calm down… I’m not interested in macho blathering, I just want fewer people to die unnecessarily. Brady United is doing good work preventing gun violence so they will receive a portion of proceeds from these two prints. Thanks for caring” Shepard stated.

      AK-47 Lotus & AR-15 Lily are screen prints on thick cream Speckletone paper and measures 18 x 24 inches. Both prints come in an edition of 550 (Signed and Numbered). The prints are priced at $55 and proceeds will go to Brady United.
      AK-47 Lotus & AR-15 Lily are available on Thursday, January 7th @ 10 AM PDT at https://store.obeygiant.com/collections/prints. More

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      in Street Art

      Shepard Fairey “Angel of Hope and Strength” New Print Available Today

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      Contemporary artist Shepard Fairey just released a new print entitled “Angel of Hope and Strength” through Obey Giant. “Angel of Hope and Strength” was created to celebrate the courage of healthcare workers, and generally symbolize the spirit of hope, strength, compassion, and resilience that we can all find in ourselves and share collectively. The edition is a […] More

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      in Street Art

      Shepard Fairey “Mother Nature on the Run” New Print Available Today

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      Contemporary artist Shepard Fairey just released a new print entitled “Mother Nature on the Run” through Obey Giant. The “Mother Nature on the Run” letterpress print was inspired by a couple of things: specifically, the genetic modification of fruits and vegetables by monopolistic corporations, and generally, the pervasive disregard for nature’s delicate balance reflected in government […] More