Shepard Fairey facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Shepard Fairey
Fairey at the installation of THE BLACK HILLS ARE NOT FOR SALE in Los Angeles on November 26, 2011
Born	Frank Shepard Fairey (1970-02-15) February 15, 1970 (age 55) Charleston, South Carolina, U.S.
Nationality	American
Education	Rhode Island School of Design
Known for	Public art, Stenciling
Notable work	Andre the Giant Has a Posse Hope Rock the Vote OBEY Clothing
Spouse(s)	Amanda Fairey
Awards	Brit Insurance Design Awards Design of the Year AS220 Free Culture Award

Frank Shepard Fairey (born February 15, 1970) is an American artist and activist. He is also the founder of OBEY Clothing. Fairey became well-known through the skateboarding scene. In 1989, he created the "Andre the Giant Has a Posse" sticker campaign. He did this while studying at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).

Fairey designed the famous Barack Obama "Hope" poster for the 2008 U.S. presidential election. The Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston calls him one of the most famous and important street artists. His art is displayed in many major museums. These include The Smithsonian, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. His art style is known for being bold and iconic, often making images look idealized.

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Early Life and Art Beginnings

Shepard Fairey grew up in Charleston, South Carolina. His father was a doctor, and his mother was a realtor. He went to school in Charleston and later to Idyllwild Arts Academy in Idyllwild, California. He finished high school in 1988.

Fairey started making art in 1984. He would put his drawings on skateboards and T-shirts. In 1988, he moved to Rhode Island to attend the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). He earned a degree in Illustration from RISD in 1992.

Shepard Fairey's Art Career

The Obey Giant Sticker Campaign

Fairey started the "Andre the Giant Has a Posse" sticker campaign in 1989. This was while he was a student at RISD. Later, it grew into the "Obey Giant" campaign. This campaign spread worldwide with help from other artists. Fairey wanted the Obey Giant to make people curious. He hoped it would make them think about their surroundings.

The Obey Giant website says the sticker has no deep meaning. It exists to make people react and think. Fairey first wanted the stickers to be popular with his art and skateboard friends. He was surprised when more people noticed and wondered about the stickers. He realized he could create a big art movement.

Fairey's "Obey" campaign was inspired by the John Carpenter movie They Live. He used slogans from the movie, like "Obey" and "This is Your God." Fairey also created the OBEY clothing line from his sticker campaign. He uses the phrase "The Medium is the Message" from Marshall McLuhan. Shepard Fairey has said that other street artists inspire some of his work.

After College: Building a Design Studio

After college, Fairey started a small printing business in Providence, Rhode Island. It was called Alternate Graphics. He focused on T-shirt and sticker printing. This allowed him to keep making his own art. In 1994, Fairey met filmmaker Helen Stickler. She made a short film about Shepard and his art called "Andre the Giant Has a Posse". The film was shown at many festivals around the world.

From the late 1990s to about 2001, Fairey lived in East Village, San Diego. There, he helped start a marketing company called Black Market Design. During this time, Fairey began using a style similar to Russian Constructivist art. This style was often seen in Soviet-era posters.

Mozilla's former logo, designed by Shepard Fairey in 1998

Fairey was a co-founder of BLK/MRKT Inc. from 1997 to 2003. This design studio focused on "high-impact marketing campaigns." They worked with big companies like Pepsi, Hasbro, and Netscape. Fairey designed the red dinosaur logo for mozilla.org.

In 2003, he started Studio Number One with his wife, Amanda Fairey. This agency designed the cover for The Black Eyed Peas' album Monkey Business. They also made the poster for the film Walk the Line. Fairey has designed album covers for many bands. These include The Smashing Pumpkins' Zeitgeist and Led Zeppelin's Mothership.

In 2004, Fairey joined artists Robbie Conal and Mear One. They created "anti-war, anti-Bush" posters for a street art campaign. It was called "Be the Revolution." Fairey also helped start Swindle Magazine.

Remote Fairey Andre In Barstow California Desert

In 2005, Fairey worked with DJ Shadow on a special box set. It included T-shirts, stickers, prints, and a music mix. He also had shows in other countries, like Paris. In 2006, Fairey designed art for the band Mission of Burma and Interpol.

His book Supply and Demand: The Art of Shepard Fairey was released in 2006. In 2007, Fairey had a solo art show called "E Pluribus Venom." It was featured on the front page of the arts section in New York Times.

Fairey donated art for the 2008 album Body of War: Songs That Inspired an Iraq War Veteran. This album helped the non-profit group Iraq Veterans Against the War. In 2008, Fairey also designed posters for the British band Bauhaus.

OBEY Giant clothing, 2008
Nordstrom department store

In September 2008, Shepard opened his solo show "Duality of Humanity" in San Francisco. It showed many of his canvas artworks.

In 2009, Fairey's first art museum exhibition, Supply & Demand, was held in Boston. It showed over 250 of his works. Fairey also created public art around Boston. He explained his main goal: "The real message behind most of my work is 'question everything'."

In 2011, Time Magazine asked Fairey to design its cover. It honored "The Protester" as Person of the Year. This was because of movements like the Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street. This was Fairey's second Person of the Year cover for Time. His first was of Barack Obama in 2008.

In January 2015, Shepard Fairey appeared on Portlandia. In July 2015, Fairey faced legal issues related to his art in Detroit. He later turned himself in to Detroit Police.

In September 2015, Fairey had an exhibition in New York City called "On Our Hands." His paintings in this show focused on current global issues. These included political problems and environmental concerns.

The Barack Obama "Hope" Poster

Fairey created several posters to support Barack Obama's campaign for President in 2008. The most famous was the "HOPE" portrait. The New Yorker art critic Peter Schjeldahl called it a very effective political image. Fairey also made a design for Rock the Vote.

The Obama campaign did not directly work with Fairey on the "Hope" poster at first. However, Fairey later said he talked with campaign officials. He said the original poster had the word "PROGRESS." The campaign then asked him to change it to "HOPE." The campaign liked this new poster and two others by Fairey that said "CHANGE" and "VOTE."

Fairey gave out 300,000 stickers and 500,000 posters during the campaign. He used money from selling his art to make more posters. He said he did not keep any money from the Obama art sales.

In February 2008, Obama sent Fairey a thank-you letter. It said Fairey's art encouraged Americans to believe they could make a difference. It also said his images had a strong effect on people.

On November 5, 2008, Chicago displayed large banners with Fairey's Obama "HOPE" portrait. Fairey created a new image of Obama for Time magazine's Person of the Year cover in 2008. The original "HOPE" portrait was on the cover of Esquire Magazine in February 2009. Shepard Fairey's influence in the election led to him being named a Person of the Year by GQ in 2008.

Shepard Fairey, Obama Hope Gold (from the Artists for Obama portfolio) 2008, serigraph, edition of 300, 14" × 10¼" (36 × 26 cm)

In October 2008, Fairey made a special series of prints called Obama Hope Gold. This project supported Obama's presidential campaign. An example of this artwork is in the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

In January 2009, the "HOPE" portrait became part of the permanent collection at the U.S. National Portrait Gallery. It was put on display on January 17, 2009.

There was a legal discussion about the "HOPE" poster. It was based on a photograph by Mannie Garcia. Fairey and the Associated Press settled the matter in January 2011.

In 2009, Fairey's Obama portrait was in the book Art For Obama: Designing Manifest Hope and the Campaign for Change. Fairey also edited this book.

In a 2015 interview with Esquire, Fairey said Obama had not fully met his expectations. He mentioned that Obama had made compromises he did not expect.

Fairey also made a version of the "HOPE" poster with a dog. He donated it to help pet adoptions. Four hundred limited edition prints were offered by Adopt-A-Pet.com. This group helps homeless pets find homes.

The Mandela Mural

In 2014, Fairey painted a huge mural, nine stories high. It honored Nelson Mandela and the 25th anniversary of the Purple Rain Protest. This public artwork is on Juta Street in Braamfontein, Johannesburg. It overlooks the Nelson Mandela Bridge.

Honest Gil Fulbright Poster

Honest Gil Fulbright SOLD Poster

Fairey created a version of the Obama HOPE poster for a funny political character, Honest Gil Fulbright. The actor who plays Fulbright is on the poster. The word "SOLD" is also on it. This refers to Fulbright's "honest" message: "I'm only in this thing for the money, but at least I'm honest about it."

Marianne Mural

As a tribute to the victims of the November 2015 Paris attacks, Fairey created a poster of Marianne. Marianne is a French national symbol. She is surrounded by the French motto Liberté, égalité, fraternité (Liberty, Equality, Fraternity). In June 2016, this design was painted as a mural in Paris. Fairey gave a copy of the poster to Emmanuel Macron. Macron hung it in his office after becoming President of France.

In December 2020, a group painted over the mural. They crossed out the motto and added "Marianne cries." Fairey said he supported those who protest against unfairness. He understood their reasons for the action.

We the People Series

This series was made during the 2016 presidential campaign. It was a protest against some statements and policies. This art aims to promote fairness for everyone. It also fights against treating minorities unfairly. This work encourages people to respect each other. The title comes from the U.S. Constitution. It shows portraits of Native Americans, African Americans, Muslims, and Latinas. It aims to defend their dignity.

Make Art Not War Mural

This mural is for Urban Nation in Berlin, Germany. Fairey created this street art in 2014. The work became a motto for street artists. It showed Fairey's support for peace movements. The mural was made with spray paint. It uses many of Fairey's usual symbols. These include his black and red cartoon-like style and repeated symbols like roses.

Kamala Harris "Forward" Poster

Fairey created a poster supporting Kamala Harris' 2024 candidacy for President of the United States. He wrote on Instagram that there is a chance to move forward. He mentioned wanting a healthy planet, fairness, and equality. He also wanted to move away from racism and discrimination. He was not paid to create this work, just like his Obama "HOPE" poster.

Major Public Artworks

Peace Elephant (2011), West Hollywood Library, Los Angeles, California
Purple Project (2014), Johannesburg, South Africa
Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité (2016), Paris, France
Welcome Home (2017), Costa Mesa, California
Defend Dignity (2019), Los Angeles, California
We Shape The Future Rose Shackle (2019), London
Voting Rights Are Human Rights (2020), Milwaukee, WI
These Sunsets Are To Die For (2022), Munich, Germany
Peace Guard (2017/2023), Lisbon, Portugal
A Mosaic of Peace and Harmony (2023), Singapore

Activism and Helping Others

A 2016 poster by Fairey, shown during the 2017 Women's March, depicts a Muslim-American woman

In the early 2000s, Fairey started giving money to groups like the Chiapas Relief Fund and the ACLU. After the Obama campaign, he donated money from poster sales to the ACLU and Feeding America. In 2010, Fairey made a poster for the ACLU with actress Olivia Wilde.

The Obey Awareness Program started in 2007. It is part of Obey Clothing. This program lets Fairey support causes he cares about. He sells special items and gives 100% of the money to chosen organizations. These groups have included Hope for Darfur, Feed America, and earthquake relief in Haiti. Environmental groups like the Surfrider Foundation also received donations.

Fairey is on the board of Reaching to Embrace the Arts. This group gives art supplies to schools and students who need them. In 2007, Fairey designed a logo for the Music Is Revolution Foundation. This group supports music education in public schools.

Fairey has type 1 diabetes. He often helps groups that fund medical research. He supports Give to Cure, which works to find cures for human diseases. In 2012, Fairey made a special print called "The Cure" for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). All money from its sale went to the JDRF. In 2013, he made a movie poster for The Human Trial. This film is about finding a cure for type 1 diabetes.

Since 2009, Fairey has given his art to help the RUSH Philanthropic Arts Foundation. In 2011, he donated a piece called Mandala Ornament. This helped raise money for the foundation's art education programs. These programs help many children in New York.

In June 2009, Fairey created a poster to support Aung San Suu Kyi. This helped bring attention to human rights in Burma. The money from this print helped the Human Rights Action Center.

In 2009, Fairey worked with other artists and activists. They created posters for the We Are Human Campaign. These posters spoke out against unfair talk about immigrants. Most of the money went to groups that help workers and fight for human dignity.

Fairey has also made art to help the David Lynch Foundation. This foundation supports education and peace. In 2009, Fairey made a poster for their "Change Begins Within" concert. In 2015, he made a poster for the 10-year anniversary of David Lynch's music. All money from sales went to the foundation.

In November 2009, Fairey worked with the LGBT group FAIR. They auctioned "Defend Equality Love Unites" posters. This raised money and awareness for marriage equality.

Fairey supports artist groups like The Art of Elysium. This group helps artists and young people with serious illnesses through art. In 2010, Fairey donated an art piece and a chance for a live portrait sitting.

In May 2010, Fairey worked with Feeding America. They created public ads to raise awareness about hunger in the U.S.

In 2011, Fairey became an honorary chair for the Young Literati. This group helps the Library Foundation of Los Angeles. Fairey has created art and helped with events for the Library Foundation.

In December 2011, Fairey helped the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation. He created a print called "The Future is Unwritten." This print honored Rauschenberg's focus on social issues. It also helped the Coalition for the Homeless. The print raised over $150,000 to support their programs.

In July 2013, Fairey did a public art project for the L.A. Fund for Education. His design, "Create Your Future," was on billboards and buses in Los Angeles. It sent the message that arts are important in schools.

In March 2014, Fairey created a portrait of Ai Weiwei. This was with "Friends of Ai Weiwei." This group wanted to raise awareness about the artist's situation in China. Money from the posters helped the artist and promoted free speech.

Shepard Fairey has also made art to support school safety. Posters with his art were seen at the March for Our Lives rally in Washington, D.C., in 2018.

Street art is often made without official permission. This shows a rebellious spirit. It makes people think differently about their surroundings. This defiant nature of street art is seen in Fairey's work. It also shows the political challenges his art brings.

Writing

In 2024, Shepard Fairey wrote the afterword for Iggy and The Stooges: The Authorized Biography.

Art Exhibitions

Selected Solo Exhibitions

2000: Obey Giant, Anno Domini Gallery, San Jose, CA
2002: Overnight Delivery, BLK/MRKT Gallery, Culver City, CA
2002: Shepard Fairey, Kinsey/DesForges Gallery, Culver City, CA
2003: This is Your God, sixspace Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2004: Obey, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen
2004: Supply and Demand, Merry Karnowsky Gallery – LA, Los Angeles, CA
2005: Manufacturing Dissent, Merry Karnowsky Gallery – LA, Los Angeles, CA
2005: Shepard Fairey, Honolulu Museum of Art, Honolulu, HI
2006: Obey, Magda Danysz Gallery, Paris, France
2006: Rise Above, Merry Karnowsky Gallery - LA, Los Angeles, CA
2007: E Pluribus Venom, Jonathan LeVine Gallery, New York, NY
2007: Ninteeneightyfouria, Stolenspace Gallery, London
2007: Imperfect Union, Merry Karnowsky Gallery – LA, Los Angeles, CA
2009: Supply & Demand, ICA – Institute of Contemporary Art Boston, Boston, MA
2009: Shepard Fairey, National Portrait Gallery, Canberra, ACT
2009: Supply & Demand, The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh, PA
2010: Supply and Demand, CAC – Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH
2010: May Day, Deitch Projects – 76 Grand Street, New York, NY
2011: Revolutions – The Album Cover Art Of Shepard Fairey, Robert Berman Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
2012: Sound & Vision, Stolenspace Gallery, London
2015: On Our Hands, Jacob Lewis Gallery, New York, NY
2015: Sid Superman is Dead : Shepard Fairey et Denis Morris, Magda Danysz Gallery, Paris, France
2015: Your Eyes Here, CAC Centro de Arte Contemporáneo de Málaga, Málaga
2016: Victory is Peace – Shepard Fairey x NoNÅME, Positive-Propaganda Artspace, Munich, Germany
2017: Shepard Fairey: Work Against The Clampdown, Art Museum of West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV
2018: Shepard Fairey: Salad Days, 1989–1999, Cranbrook Art Museum, Bloomfield, Hills, MI
2019: Retrospective Shepard Fairey, (600 works for Grenoble Street Art Fest), Grenoble, France
2021: Future Mosaic, Opera Gallery, Dubai
2022: New Clear Power, Amuseum of Contemporary Art, Munich
2023: Backward Forward , Dallas Contemporary, Texas
2023: Shepard Fairey: ICONS , Subliminal Projects, Los Angeles, CA

Selected Group Exhibitions

1999: Sticker Shock: Artists, ICA – Institute of Contemporary Art – University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
2003: Beautiful Losers, CAC – Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH
2004: Backjumps – The Live Issue #1, Kunstraum Kreuzberg / Bethanien, Berlin
2008: Under a Red Sky, Stolenspace Gallery, London
2009: The Art of Rebellion, Robert Berman Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
2009: Urban Art – Werke aus der Sammlung Reinking, Weserburg | Museum für moderne Kunst, Bremen
2009: Viva la Revolucion: A Dialogue with the Urban Landscape, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego – MCASD Downtown, San Diego, CA
2013: At home I'm a tourist’ Colección de Selim Varol, CAC Centro de Arte Contemporáneo de Málaga, Málaga
2014: The Insistent Image: Recurrent Motifs in the Art of Shepard Fairey and Jasper John, Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art, Charleston, SC
2014: Art Alliance: The Provocateurs, Block 37, Chicago, IL
2015: Sleeping Beauty, Magda Danysz Gallery, Paris, France
2019: POW! WOW!, Honolulu, Hawaii

Commercial Art Projects

Promotional work by Fairey for the album and film Celebration Day served as a backdrop for a 2012 Led Zeppelin press conference

Fairey designed the album artwork for Flogging Molly's Whiskey on a Sunday.
He appears as himself in the 2006 video game, Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure.
Fairey designed the Obey Giant room at The Creek South Beach.
He designed book covers like Woodstock Experience by Michael Lang. He also designed album covers for Smashing Pumpkins' Zeitgeist and Led Zeppelin's Mothership.
He designed the album cover for will.i.am's Must B 21 (Soundtrack to Get Things Started).
On January 19, 2009, Fairey created a Google Doodle for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Fairey's Obey logo appears in the video game Tony Hawk's Underground 2. It also appears in the anime Afro Samurai.
The "Andre the Giant Has a Posse" is a spray image in the video game Counter-Strike.
Fairey designed the cover for Russell Brand's book Booky Wook 2.
He contributed a drawing to the Police Brutality Coloring Book in 2011.
Fairey has released several watches with the Swiss company Hublot.

TV, Radio, and Movies

Rash, a 2005 video documentary, includes an interview with Shepard Fairey.
On January 20, 2009, Fairey was on the Fresh Air radio program. He talked about his "Hope" poster and his street art.
On February 11, 2010, Stephen Colbert showed a poster designed with Fairey on The Colbert Report. It was for Colbert's coverage of the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Fairey appeared on The Colbert Report again on December 8, 2010. He sprayed his Obey logo on a portrait of Colbert.
Fairey is featured in the Banksy movie Exit Through the Gift Shop.
In 2011, on the TV show The Young and the Restless, a character bought a Shepard Fairey artwork.
On March 4, 2012, Fairey appeared as himself on The Simpsons episode "Exit Through the Kwik-E-Mart".
Fairey appeared in the 2012 film Bones Brigade: An Autobiography.
In 2013, a short film based on Shepard Fairey's story was released called Obey the Giant.
In the 2013 comedy film This Is the End, actor James Franco has an "Andre the Giant Has a Posse" artwork.
In 2017, Obey Giant, a documentary about Shepard Fairey, was released by Hulu.
In 2018, he appeared in Bad Reputation, a documentary about Joan Jett's career.

Personal Life

Fairey performing a DJ set in 2009.

Fairey lives in Los Feliz, Los Angeles, with his wife Amanda and their two daughters, Vivienne and Madeline. Besides his art career, Fairey also DJs at clubs. He uses the names DJ Diabetic and Emcee Insulin, as he has Type 1 diabetes.