Category Archives: Shepard Fairey

Keith Haring. Shepard Fairey. OBEY Collaboration.

Though Keith Haring died only two years after I started making street art, his art and practice had already made a profound impact on me. At art college and on the streets of NYC in the late 80’s and early 90’s, Keith’s radiant baby and other images could be seen on the tees of all the flyest hipsters. Keith Haring was a prolific artist with a distinct style of drawing and painting that was simultaneously refined, but primitive, deliberate but lyrical and energetic. Haring believed “the public has a right to art” and this philosophy informed his populist approach to spreading his art and messages

He pursued his art with a deeply personal vision, but also as a champion of social justice and a belief in the interconnectedness of humanity. Haring demonstrated the power of art on the streets, but he also put his art on t-shirts and record covers. He even opened a retail space in NYC called The Pop Shop. Eventually Haring’s artwork became widely respected, displayed, and sold as “fine art”. Haring rose from the 80’s NYC graffiti scene to not only affect the art world, but to dramatically impact pop culture. Inspired by Keith Haring’s achievements, I pursued my art career with the optimism that my goals could be attained. — Shepard Fairey

[Artist] Shepard Fairey ~ The [Obey] Rise

Artist Shepard Fairey gives a personal and insightful account on how his artistry began in graffiti, skateboarding and punk rock. And how these interests influence his life and mold his art career.

In the vid interview, he timelines ~ his youthful rise from school trip to New York City to the fusion of Shut Skateboards design and developing his own technique.

:: View Profile :: var bt_counter_type=1;var bt_project_id=19842;

Banksy’s Exit Through The Gift Shop – Premiere

The Hollywood fanatics came out to the Los Angeles premiere of artists Mr. Brainwash [Thierry Guetta] and Banksy’s Exit Through The Gift Shop documentary at Los Angeles Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles [California]. In attendance were Roger Gastman, RISK, Shepard Fairey, Adrien Brody, Danny Masterson, Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, Pete Wentz, Brent Bolthouse, James Kyson-Lee, Jonny Lee Miller, Scott Caan, Tim Daly, Greg Lauren, Elizabeth Berkley, Minnie Driver, Rebecca De Mornay, Lily Cole, Enrique Murciano, designers Tarina Tarantino and Jeremy Scott.


Jeff Vespa @ WireImage

Exit Through The Gift Shop hits New York and Los Angeles theaters on Friday, April 16.

:: View Profile :: var bt_counter_type=1;var bt_project_id=19842;

SUBject / subJECT @ Subliminal Projects

Artist Shepard Fairey’s Subliminal Projects presents SUBject / subJECT opening reception – an exhibition of artists Kime Buzzelli, Monica Canilao, Deedee Cheriel, Jessica Hess, Mel Kadel, Nikki McClure, Elizabeth McGrath, Meryl Smith, Jesse Spears, Jen Stark, Mona Superhero, Swoon and Marissa Textor benefitting Los Angeles Downtown Women’s Center – on Saturday, April 10 at 8:00pm to 11:00pm. The SUBject / subJECT exhibit will remain on view until Saturday, May 8, 2010.


Subliminal Projects

Subliminal Projects is located at 1331 West Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California [90026] @ 213.213.0078. via Subliminal Projects – 10% of all SUBject / subJECT art sales proceeds will go directly to the Los Angeles Downtown Women’s Center – dedicated to providing permanent, supportive housing and a safe and healthy community for homeless women.

:: View Profile :: var bt_counter_type=1;var bt_project_id=19842;

Weekend Pacifists @ Subliminal Projects

The curating cohorts at Shepard Fairey’s Subliminal Projects have assemble art works – Weekend Pacifists – by Andy Jenkins, Michael Myers, Chris Pastras, Russ Pope and Michael Sieben whose modern lives and works infuses and overlaps the skateboarding and low-fi art world throughout the better part of the last two decades. Andy Jenkins, Michael Myers, Chris Pastras, Russ Pope and Michael Sieben’s work embodies whimsy and social politics as united voices of an unique generation.

Weekend Pacifists exhibit opens on Saturday, August 22 at Subliminal Projects at 8pm to 11pm. Subliminal Projects is located @ 1331 W. Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California [90026] @ 213.213.078.

Weekend Pacifists opens on Saturday, August 22 through Saturday, September 19 @ Subliminal Projects. And here are the artists’ interpretations of their Weekend Pacifists entitlement:

Andy Jenkins: I work a regular schedule during the week and it’s anything but passive. On the weekend I become passive, as my personal work steers me around by the hands.

Michael Myers: To me, the ‘Weekend Pacifists’ is about the feeling of hope and renewal that happens weekend after weekend. The weekend pacifist is about comaraderie, spirituality, gratefulness, and the quest for being content in the now and for the week ahead.

Chris Pastras: I’m a pacifist who loves the weekend, so I guess I fit the bill pretty well.

Russ Pope: Weekend Pacifists? Pacified by the weekend on a weekly basis. Good Stuff. Living everyday like it’s a weekend, not saving the good times for two days a week.

Michael Sieben: Weekend Warriors is an album by Ted Nugent that was released in 1978. It’s also a term used to describe people who follow their passions on the weekend. The phrase ‘Weekend Pacifists’ describes an individual who is dedicated to their passion full time thus leaving the weekend open to relaxing or taking a break from the war. Hopefully that doesn’t sound too pretentious

The Detournements of Wynn Miller @ Exhibit A

Took it easy today, but stopped by the opening of The Detournements of Wynn Miller @ Richard Villa and Tony Alva’s Exhibit A Gallery on 1086 S. Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles [90019]. The house was packed and rightful so, the photos were fucking incredible and the paintings were must-haves. I’ve included a few pix of the paintings and the night’s smallest art connoisseur and skateboarder as well.


Reserve Result (RR)

My pixer bud Ed Duarte, Shane Fritsch, Chris Koelma & Jeff Doukakis of St Leonards and the lovely Emma Fritsch drank, oogle and listen to the spins of DJ Keith Morris and Shepard Fairey. Thanks kids.


Reserve Result (RR)

In the back patio, Mario [FDubs] Luevanos held a live painting “detournement” of a 2009 Scion XD while the peeps grilled, ate and drank. The Detournements of Wynn Miller exhibition starts today runs til Saturday, July 11 @ 1:00pm – 7:00pm on Mondays to Saturdays.


Reserve Result (RR)

All of the arts are up for purchase, stop by Exhibit A Gallery on 1086 S. Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles [90019] and visit @ exhibitagallery.com.var addthis_pub=”reserveresult”;
Bookmark and Share

John Van Hamersveld @ Subliminal Projects

The Subliminal Projects Gallery – owned by Shepard Fairey – are showcasing artist John Van Hamersveldʼs graphics retrospective titled Post – Future, the exhibition opens on Friday, March 6 and “…features many of Van Hamersveldʼs classic works juxtaposed with re-imaginings of those images, recent retro- styled pieces and a never-before-seen series of drawings connecting past and present. Through the show, Van Hamersveld creates a lens through which the past can be seen and the future can be sourced, where imagery melts into a pool that is both the source and the destination of creativity.”


Subliminal Projects

For more information, visit Subliminalprojects.com – Subliminal Projects @ 1331 W. Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California 90026, or contact SB @ 213.213.0078 or info@subliminalprojects.com
var addthis_pub=”reserveresult”;
Bookmark and Share

Shepard Fairey @ The Charlie Rose Show

Shepard Fairey appears on Charlie Rose Show to discuss his graffiti art and influence on President Barack Obama campaign. The Institute of Contemporary Art Boston (ICABoston) opens the first museum survey of Shepard Fairey 20-Year Retrospective titled Supply & Demand exhibition.

The Supply & Demand exhibition runs from Friday, February 6 – Sunday, August 16. You can visit ICABoston @ icaboston.org

var addthis_pub=”reserveresult”;
Bookmark and Share

President Barack Obama – Inauguration

We have a new President and direction for change and community service towards America’s transformation. President Barack Obama became the 44th President of United States of America @ noon and was sworn in shortly after by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.

.msnbcLinks {font-size:11px; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #999; margin-top: 5px; background: transparent; text-align: center; width: 425px;} .msnbcLinks a {text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px;} .msnbcLinks a:link, .msnbcLinks a:visited {color: #5799db !important;} .msnbcLinks a:hover, .msnbcLinks a:active {color:#CC0000 !important;}

President Barack Obama had to correct John Roberts Jr. on the thiry-five words oath process as the president was being sworn in during his inauguration ceremony. And here’s the complete speech of President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address:

My fellow Citizens

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we the people have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. Those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers … our found fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. And so to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world’s resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
“Let it be told to the future world … that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive…that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it).”

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.

We are ready to transform America and proceed ahead.

ARTICLEURL

Shepard Fairey @ George Orwell’s Animal Farm

The second part of artist Shepard Fairey’s unique treatment of George Orwell’s Animal Farm classic novel at the request of United Kingdom’s Penguin Books will be available in United States. The publishing house giant sold the limited print as part of a book promotion in the UK only, until now. You can purchase the Animal Farm and 1984 prints on Wednesday, December 31 between 12:00 noon and 3:00pm and they’re about 17″ by 24″ in size, signed and numbered.

You can order the Animal Farm and 1984 set prints at ObeyGiant.com.

ARTICLEURL

%d bloggers like this: