Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Fairey Anti-Bush”?
Artist Statement
Screen Print 18 x 24 inches Edition of 100
Summary
Fairey Anti-Bush is a 2003 screen print published by Obey Giant in a first edition of 100, measuring 18 x 24 inches. The title indicates a politically charged anti-Bush message, situating it within Fairey's protest and propaganda output during the George W. Bush administration. The source description is limited to medium, dimensions, and edition, providing no detail on the specific imagery. Rendered in his graphic poster style, it belongs among his early-2000s political prints. The small edition of 100 gives it a tighter scarcity profile. Source facts confirm the year, medium, dimensions, and edition size only.
Why It Matters
Fairey Anti-Bush is notable as an overtly political protest print from 2003, made during the George W. Bush administration and amid the broader anti-war climate of the period. The title makes its oppositional stance explicit, placing it firmly within Fairey's lineage of dissent and propaganda-style protest art that runs from his early Che and Revolution imagery through his later, better-known political campaigns. The small first edition of 100 gives it a tighter scarcity profile than many of his 250-to-300-count posters, adding collector interest. As a direct political statement, it documents Fairey's willingness to take pointed positions years before his Obama-era HOPE poster made his political voice nationally famous, marking continuity in his activist sensibility. Because the source description is sparse - confined to medium, dimensions, and edition - the specific imagery and message details are not documented here, so claims about exactly what the print depicts should remain cautious. Still, the explicit anti-Bush framing and the small edition make it a meaningful artifact of early-2000s protest culture and of Fairey's consistent engagement with American political dissent, fitting cleanly into a collection oriented around his propaganda and protest work.
Collector Perspective
This print appeals to collectors of Fairey's political and protest work and to those interested in early-2000s American dissent culture. Its explicit anti-Bush stance gives it a clear thematic identity, and the small edition of 100 adds appeal for buyers seeking scarcer political titles. At 18 x 24 inches it is a standard, displayable size that fits a protest- or propaganda-themed grouping. Within a collection it connects to Fairey's broader lineage of political imagery, from earlier revolutionary portraits to his later activist campaigns. Because the source detail is limited, collectors should rely on documentation for specifics of the imagery, but its political framing makes it a focused acquisition.
Historical Context
Released in 2003 by Obey Giant, Fairey Anti-Bush situates itself within the political protest current of the George W. Bush years and the surrounding anti-war climate. It continues Fairey's long engagement with dissent and propaganda-style imagery that traces back to his 1990s revolutionary portraits such as Che and Revolution. Made years before his Obama-era HOPE poster brought his political voice to national prominence, it marks continuity in his activist sensibility during the propaganda era of his work. Issued in a small first edition of 100 at 18 x 24 inches, it documents Fairey's readiness to take explicit political positions, though the source provides only its core production facts without describing the specific imagery.
FAQ
What is Fairey Anti-Bush about?
The title indicates an anti-Bush political message, placing the print within Fairey's protest and propaganda output during the George W. Bush administration. The source description is limited to medium, dimensions, and edition, so specific imagery details are not documented here.
What is the edition size?
It was published by Obey Giant in a first edition of 100. That is a relatively small run compared with many of Fairey's 250-to-300-count posters, giving it a tighter scarcity profile among his early-2000s political prints.
What are the dimensions and medium?
It is a screen print measuring 18 x 24 inches, dated 2003. It is rendered in Fairey's graphic poster style and fits the standard format he used for many political and music posters of the period.
Where does it fit in Fairey's political work?
It belongs to his lineage of protest and propaganda art, made years before his Obama-era HOPE poster brought his political voice to national fame. It reflects continuity in his activist sensibility during the propaganda era of his practice.
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.