better than treasure

I came across a Shepard Fairey in Harvard Square, and was immediately compelled to point, shout, examine, and photograph. A photo by Amelia:


Some interesting observations:

• a scribble exclaiming 'f u fairy' -was the misspelling purposely meant as an insult?
• the work was made of two general areas which looked as though they had been ripped and overlapped - combined with the actual rips and tears it created a wonderful effect
• someone had written 'sell out' on the forehead of the woman in this print
• someone else had crossed it out

I was shocked that so many people walked by without even a passing glance - perhaps because I was beside myself with excitement. How often is it that I can actually touch the works that I study? I love public art.

In my opinion, all art should be this close to people - for them to interact with and observe. Does anyone out there think that Fairey is a sellout? How does being a household name change his message?

I know you know him

...even if its just from the Obama Hope poster. I went and saw Shepard Fairey's collection at the ICA in Boston (click here for video), and I was impressed. But also a little saddened that a person so talented, and with such an impressive resume (he has done work for Interpol, Led Zeplin, & the Black Eyed Peas, and graphics for GHII and Walk the Line), could spend so long in near obscurity probably in part because he is a street artist. It is common for him to 'borrow' images from pop culture (my favorite being a portrait of Flavor Flav) and then put them up illegally. Like Andy Warhol said, "Art is what you can get away with." The image on the left is the original Obama poster, before his campaign contacted Fairey and requested that the word at the bottom be changed to hope. Fairey has always used his work to express his opinions, but this poster was the first time he has used his art to support any political figure.

Fairey does quite a bit of street art and has been arrested roughly 14 times in his career. A lot of his art centers around a mythical figure that he created based on the face of Andre the Giant called Obey Giant. If you read his manifesto you will see that he wants to make people rethink what they already know, and he does so by posing questions or flat out confronting the viewer on an issue. Obey Giant is a commentary on advertising and its power in our lives. (By the age of 5, children can recognize and identify more than 100 logos - do not even get me started.) It represents a symbol with no agenda and for some people that is discomforting; you are supposed to be able to recognize labels. There is a certain amount of relief when you discover what the image means, and in turn that makes you think about what symbols mean in your life.

Fairey encourages people to proliferate his work in any way they choose and even offers a few images on his website that can be printed out and used to make stickers, posters, etc. I decided I could use a little Obey Giant in my life, so here goes my first diy art project: