Obey The Art of Shepard Fairey
Courtesy of artist and SKIRA
This bold new hardcover monograph offers a visual, conceptual & comprehensive journey through the 35-year career of one of the most influential & internationally acclaimed street artists: released April 1, Obey The Art of Shepard Fairey ($50, 244 pages, 295 color illustrations, published by SKIRA) presents a body of work that is among the most representative of Fairey's artistic production, together with numerous unique pieces conceived especially for this special book. Shepard Fairey (Charleston, 1970) is the artist behind Obey, known for the HOPE poster, a portrait of Barack Obama for the 2008 presidential campaign, Obey is distinguished by an essential and bold style with a minimalist palette guided by the hip hop and punk cultures that taught the artist to question social conventions. This is the poetics with which Fairey animates all of his works, inviting the audience to question on relevant current issues.
Courtesy of artist and SKIRA
The sections of the book are inspired by the most representative themes of Shepard Fairey’s art: Propaganda; Peace and Justice; Environment; Music; and New Works. Introduced with a statement by Obey, the book begins with the section dedicated to propaganda featuring some of the artist’s most significant images on this theme, starting with the iconic HOPE portraying Obama’s face, which sparked so much enthusiasm and hope in 2008. It then continues through works in the peace and justice section in which, through the power of images, Shepard Fairey draws attention to issues such as human rights, abuse of power, war and peace.
Courtesy of artist and SKIRA
Suggestive and powerful are the works in the environment section, where the artist wishes to open a dialogue with the viewer reminding him of the importance of community in safeguarding our planet. The artist’s universal message also finds expression in the section devoted to music. Of this art form, Fairey especially admires universality and accessibility; he himself cites musical groups such as the Sex Pistols, Black Flag, Bob Marley and Public Enemy as his main sources of inspiration. The monograph ends with the new works, executed by Obey between 2021 and 2024, and Rubylith illustrations.
