Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Duality Of Humanity 4”?
Artist Statement
On Monday 11/17 we will be releasing the 3rd collaboration with legendary photographer Al Rockoff. This print is entitled Duality of Humanity 4 and is, of course, part of the DOH Series. The print is an edition of 450 and will be $50.
Summary
Duality Of Humanity 4 is a 2008 screen print by Shepard Fairey, published by Obey Giant as a First Edition of 450 at an original price of $50. Measuring 24 x 18 inches, it was released on 11/17/2008 as the next entry in Fairey's ongoing DOH (Duality of Humanity) Series. Per the source, it is the third collaboration with legendary photographer Al Rockoff. The work explores the series' central tension between humanity's capacity for both conflict and compassion, applying Fairey's graphic style to photographic source material in a landscape-oriented composition.
Why It Matters
Duality Of Humanity 4 is part of Shepard Fairey's sustained DOH Series, a body of work built around the tension between human violence and human dignity. The source identifies it as the third collaboration with legendary war photographer Al Rockoff, grounding the print in real documentary photography rather than invented imagery. That collaboration gives the series unusual depth: Fairey's graphic treatment is layered over Rockoff's lens on conflict, producing works that function as both art objects and meditations on civil rights and justice. Released at $50 in an edition of 450, the print follows Fairey's accessible Obey Giant model while carrying weightier subject matter than many of his pop-culture releases. For collectors, the DOH Series matters because it represents one of Fairey's more thematically serious recurring projects, and Duality Of Humanity 4 is a numbered chapter within it. Its value lies in series continuity and the documentary collaboration, making it a meaningful target for collectors who pursue thematic sets and who prize the convergence of photojournalism and graphic art in Fairey's catalog.
Collector Perspective
Duality Of Humanity 4 appeals to collectors who pursue Fairey's DOH Series as a thematic set and to those drawn to works rooted in documentary photography and social justice. The collaboration with photographer Al Rockoff adds provenance and weight that distinguish it from his lighter pop-culture prints. At an edition of 450 and a modest original price, it was an accessible release, suiting series completists and newer collectors alike. The 24 x 18 inch landscape format offers display variety against his more common vertical prints. It fits collections organized around civil rights, social justice, or collaboration, and pairs naturally with the other numbered Duality of Humanity prints for a coherent series grouping.
Historical Context
Duality Of Humanity 4 dates to November 2008 and belongs to Shepard Fairey's DOH Series, a recurring project that paired his graphic style with photojournalistic imagery. The source identifies it as the third collaboration with legendary photographer Al Rockoff, situating the work within a sustained creative partnership built on documentary photography of conflict. Released through Obey Giant as a First Edition of 450, it fits the prolific 2008 output that defined this stretch of Fairey's career, while carrying the more serious civil-rights-and-justice undertone of the Duality series. Within his arc, the print shows how Fairey balanced high-volume, accessibly priced editions with thematically ambitious recurring projects, using collaboration with a noted photographer to deepen the meaning of his graphic interventions.
FAQ
What series does Duality Of Humanity 4 belong to?
Per the source, it is part of the DOH (Duality of Humanity) Series and was released on 11/17/2008. The series explores the tension between humanity's capacity for conflict and compassion, and this is a numbered chapter within that ongoing project.
Who collaborated on the print?
The source states the print is the third collaboration with legendary photographer Al Rockoff. This grounds the work in documentary photography, with Fairey's graphic style layered over Rockoff's photographic source material.
How large is the edition and what did it cost?
Duality Of Humanity 4 was issued as a First Edition of 450 at an original price of $50, according to the source record. This edition size is typical of Fairey's Obey Giant screen prints from this period.
What are the dimensions and medium?
The print is a screen print measuring 24 x 18 inches in landscape orientation, published by Obey Giant in 2008. The medium and dimensions are confirmed by the source record.
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.