Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Strummer Poster”?
Artist Statement
STRUMMER POSTER Screen Print 18 x 24 inches Edition of 300 Image of Joe Strummer, the leader of legendary Seventies punk band The Clash. Part of the Punk set, this print was released just after Strummer's death, in 2002.
Summary
Strummer Poster is a 2002 screen print by Shepard Fairey, published by Obey Giant in a first edition of 300, measuring 18 x 24 inches. It depicts Joe Strummer, the frontman of the influential 1970s punk band The Clash, rendered in Fairey's high-contrast graphic poster style. Part of his Punk set, the print was released just after Strummer's death in 2002, giving it a memorial dimension. The work uses bold flat fields and stylized portraiture to honor a foundational punk figure, situating it within Fairey's music and counterculture themes alongside other punk portraits from the same period.
Why It Matters
Strummer Poster carries unusual emotional weight among Fairey's early music prints because it was released just after Joe Strummer's death in 2002, functioning as both portrait and memorial. Strummer, as the leader of The Clash, was a foundational figure in punk's political wing, and his fusion of music with activism mirrors the very synthesis Fairey would pursue throughout his career. As the anchor of Fairey's Punk set — the cluster of portraits including Rotten, Rollins, and Ramone all tied to the moment of Strummer's passing — this print holds a central place in that grouping. Its significance lies in how it connects Fairey's aesthetic lineage directly to its source: the DIY poster culture and politically charged punk that shaped his worldview. With a first edition of 300, it is a defined edition that documents a specific cultural moment. For collectors, Strummer Poster is among the most resonant of Fairey's punk portraits, valued both as a tribute to a major musician and as a key piece in understanding the countercultural foundation of Fairey's graphic practice.
Collector Perspective
Strummer Poster is a priority piece for collectors drawn to Fairey's punk roots and for fans of The Clash and Joe Strummer specifically. Its memorial context — released just after Strummer's death — gives it added meaning beyond its graphic appeal. At 18 x 24 inches it frames cleanly and serves as the centerpiece of a Punk-set grouping with the Rotten, Rollins, and Ramone posters. The edition of 300 makes it moderately limited, attractive to collectors who want an authentic early Fairey music print with strong cultural resonance. It fits equally well in a music-themed collection or a broader display tracing the countercultural origins of Fairey's aesthetic, and its recognizable subject gives it lasting appeal.
Historical Context
Strummer Poster dates to 2002, within Fairey's posters-and-propaganda period and his active early-2000s screen-printing run. It anchors his Punk set, a group of punk portraits released around the time of Joe Strummer's death that year. Strummer's leadership of The Clash made him a defining figure in politically engaged punk, and Fairey's tribute reflects the deep influence of that scene on his own work. Produced years before his 2008 Obama-era prominence, the print documents the countercultural and DIY poster traditions that shaped Fairey's graphic vocabulary, marking a moment where his personal musical heroes and his artistic practice directly intersected.
FAQ
Who does Strummer Poster depict?
It depicts Joe Strummer, the leader of the legendary 1970s punk band The Clash. Fairey rendered him in his high-contrast graphic poster style. The print is part of his Punk set and was released just after Strummer's death in 2002.
What are the dimensions and edition size?
The print measures 18 x 24 inches and was released as a first edition of 300 screen prints by Obey Giant, making it a moderately limited edition from Fairey's early-2000s catalog.
Why is this print significant?
Released just after Joe Strummer's 2002 death, it functions as both portrait and memorial to a foundational punk figure. It anchors Fairey's Punk set and directly connects his graphic practice to the politically charged punk culture that influenced him.
What other prints belong to the same set?
Strummer Poster is part of the Punk set, which includes the Rotten, Rollins, and Ramone posters, all from 2002 and tied to the period around Strummer's death. Together they form a focused grouping of punk portraits in Fairey's catalog.
Related Works
About the Artist
Shepard Fairey (b. 1970, Charleston, South Carolina) is an American street artist, graphic designer, and activist, and a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design. His 1989 “André the Giant Has a Posse” sticker grew into the global OBEY GIANT campaign — an ongoing experiment in propaganda, obedience, and visual culture. He reached worldwide recognition with the 2008 “Hope” portrait of Barack Obama, now held by the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. Across screen prints, stencils, murals, and collage, Fairey channels propaganda aesthetics toward themes of peace, justice, environmentalism, and civil rights. His work is in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Victoria & Albert Museum, and LACMA.