Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Filth & Fury”?
Artist Statement
FILTH AND FURY Screen Print 18 x 24 inches Edition of 300
Summary
Filth & Fury is a 2006 Shepard Fairey screen print published by Obey Giant in a first edition of 300, measuring 18 x 24 inches. The title references the punk and counterculture lineage that runs through much of Fairey's work, and the print applies his bold, high-contrast graphic treatment to that defiant subject matter. Released at an original price of $30 as a standard-format screen print, it belongs to Fairey's mid-2000s output of pop-culture and appropriation-driven works issued through Obey Giant. The work pairs aggressive typography-driven attitude with the clean iconography that defines his print catalog.
Why It Matters
Filth & Fury taps directly into the punk-rock spirit that has always animated Fairey's practice, echoing the raw energy and anti-establishment posture of the music and subculture that shaped him. The phrase itself is freighted with punk history, and Fairey's appropriation of that attitude into a graphic print is characteristic of how he channels music and counterculture into collectible imagery. For collectors, this is a piece that sits at the crossroads of Fairey's pop-culture engagement and his rebellious sensibility, making it attractive to those who collect across both his music-adjacent and propaganda-leaning work. At an edition of 300 it is a relatively contained release for 2006, a year in which Fairey was issuing a continuous stream of standard 18 x 24 screen prints through Obey Giant. The print rewards collectors who value the defiant, attitude-forward side of his catalog over his celebrity portraiture. It also documents the way Fairey repeatedly draws on subcultural language and confrontational phrasing to give his graphic work a sharp political and cultural edge, reinforcing his identity as an artist rooted in street art and punk rebellion.
Collector Perspective
This print suits collectors who gravitate to the punk and counterculture current in Fairey's work and want a piece with attitude rather than a straightforward portrait. The confrontational title and bold graphic treatment make it a strong wall statement, and it pairs well with music-adjacent and rebellion-themed pieces in a focused grouping. The standard 18 x 24 inch size frames easily and integrates with other mid-2000s Obey Giant screen prints. With an edition of 300 it is contained enough to feel distinctive while remaining accessible to collectors building depth across Fairey's catalog. Buyers who appreciate the subcultural, anti-establishment dimension of his output are the natural audience.
Historical Context
Filth & Fury comes from Fairey's busy mid-2000s period of Obey Giant releases, a stretch when he was reliably issuing standard-format 18 x 24 screen prints across pop-culture, propaganda, and music themes. By 2006 Fairey's studio practice was fully mature, well beyond his origins in the Andre the Giant sticker campaign, and his ongoing engagement with punk and counterculture remained a defining thread. The title's punk resonance situates the print within his lifelong dialogue with rebellious music and subculture, a current that informs both his imagery and his self-presentation. It predates his late-decade mainstream breakthrough and represents the attitude-driven, appropriation-rich work that built his early collector base.
FAQ
What is the edition size of Filth & Fury?
Filth & Fury is a first-edition screen print limited to 300, published by Obey Giant in 2006. At 18 x 24 inches it uses Fairey's standard print format and represents a contained mid-2000s release within his pop-culture output.
When was Filth & Fury released?
Filth & Fury was released on February 18, 2006, through Obey Giant. It was issued as a screen print at an original price of $30, part of Fairey's steady run of standard-format prints that year.
What is the medium and size?
Filth & Fury is a screen print measuring 18 x 24 inches, published by Obey Giant in an edition of 300. It is a hand-pulled screen print in Fairey's standard mid-2000s format.
What themes does Filth & Fury engage?
The print draws on Fairey's enduring punk and counterculture sensibility, applying his bold high-contrast graphic style to a defiant, attitude-forward subject. It sits within his pop-culture and appropriation-driven work from the mid-2000s.
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.