Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Debbie Harry Canvas Print”?
Artist Statement
18 x 24? Screen Print, Signed and Numbered Edition of 450 Price: $70 Photo by Bobby Grossman. For info go to http://www.bobbygrossman.com. Release Date: 5/7/2010
Summary
Debbie Harry Canvas Print is an 18 x 24 inch screen print published by Obey Giant in 2010, released May 7, in a signed and numbered first edition of 450 at $70. The portrait depicts Blondie singer Debbie Harry and is based on a photograph by Bobby Grossman. Rendered as a canvas screen print, the work applies Fairey's bold, high-contrast portrait treatment to a figure central to New York's punk and new wave music scene. It belongs to a run of 2010 music-and-culture canvas portraits Fairey produced around music and pop-culture subjects.
Why It Matters
This print sits within Fairey's long-running practice of memorializing musicians and cultural figures whose work shaped the underground and countercultural movements he draws from. Debbie Harry, as the face of Blondie, bridged punk, new wave, and pop, and her image carries the same downtown New York energy that informs much of Fairey's source material. Built on a Bobby Grossman photograph, the print continues Fairey's habit of crediting and partnering with photographers rather than appropriating images outright, a recurring concern in his portrait work. The 2010 canvas series translated Fairey's screen-print aesthetic onto canvas, giving collectors a gallery-ready object distinct from his paper editions. With a stated edition of 450, signed and numbered, it is a mid-size release typical of Obey Giant's output in this period. For collectors of music portraiture, the print is notable as one of Fairey's relatively few female music subjects, and it anchors a recognizable cluster of 2010 canvas portraits that includes Basquiat, Strummer, and Neil Young. Its appeal rests on subject recognition, the canvas format, and its place in Fairey's documented engagement with the musicians who soundtracked the punk era.
Collector Perspective
This print appeals to music-portrait collectors, Blondie and new-wave fans, and buyers building a set of Fairey's 2010 canvas portraits. The canvas screen-print format makes it display-ready without framing under glass, which suits collectors who want an immediate wall presence. As a signed and numbered edition of 450, it offers an accessible entry point into Fairey originals while still being a limited release. It pairs naturally with the companion 2010 canvases of Basquiat, Strummer, and Neil Young for those assembling a thematic music wall, and complements Fairey's earlier 2005 Debbie Harry portrait for collectors tracking how he revisits the same subject across years and formats.
Historical Context
The print belongs to a 2010 wave of Obey Giant canvas portraits in which Fairey applied his screen-print portrait language to musicians and cultural figures on canvas rather than paper. By 2010, Fairey was well established following the 2008 Obama HOPE image, and his Obey Giant releases regularly drew on the punk, new wave, and hip-hop figures that shaped his visual sensibility. Debbie Harry and Blondie are recurring touchstones in his catalog; he had already produced a 2005 Debbie Harry portrait, and would return to her again with the 2017 Doom variant. This canvas sits in that continuity, reflecting Fairey's sustained interest in documenting the faces of the music scenes that influenced his work.
FAQ
What are the dimensions and edition size of this print?
The Debbie Harry Canvas Print measures 18 x 24 inches and was released as a signed and numbered first edition of 450, published by Obey Giant in 2010 at an original price of $70.
Who is the subject and what photo was it based on?
The print depicts Debbie Harry, lead singer of Blondie. According to the source, the portrait is based on a photograph by Bobby Grossman, whom Fairey credits in the release description.
When was this print released?
The print was released on May 7, 2010 through Obey Giant, part of a group of 2010 canvas portraits Fairey produced of musicians and cultural figures.
Is this the only Debbie Harry print Fairey made?
No. The related records include a 2005 Debbie Harry portrait and a 2017 Debbie Harry, Doom variant, showing Fairey returned to the subject across multiple years and formats.
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.