Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “SF Fire Escape Print”?
Artist Statement
18 x 24? Screen Print Signed and Numbered Edition of 450 $45 Limit 1 per person/household. Release Date: 4/7/11
Summary
SF Fire Escape Print is a 2011 Shepard Fairey screen print published by Obey Giant, released April 7, 2011 in a signed and numbered first edition of 450 at 18 x 24 inches, priced at $45. The image references a San Francisco fire-escape subject, part of Fairey's series of location-tied prints documenting his public and urban work. It uses his bold graphic-poster vocabulary and was issued with a one-per-household purchase limit, consistent with Obey Giant's accessible-edition releases that spring.
Why It Matters
SF Fire Escape Print is one of a tightly clustered run of 2011 location-named editions Fairey released across consecutive weeks, connecting the print directly to specific urban sites and to his practice of grounding work in real city architecture. The fire-escape motif evokes the dense, vertical streetscapes where Fairey's public art typically lives, reinforcing the street-to-print throughline that defines much of his catalog. At $45 and an edition of 450, it was an approachable release designed for broad collector access rather than scarcity-driven hype, which is precisely why it serves as connective tissue in a comprehensive Fairey collection. Its source theme tags point toward pop culture and portraiture-adjacent legacy, suggesting Fairey folded recognizable iconography into the architectural subject. For collectors, the value lies in the print's specificity: a documented San Francisco subject, a precise April 2011 release date, and a verifiable signed-and-numbered edition. It rewards buyers who care about Fairey's geographic and serial logic, the way he maps his output onto particular cities and moments, more than those chasing his single most famous images.
Collector Perspective
This suits collectors drawn to Fairey's city-specific and architectural subjects, and those building a sequential 2011 set alongside the San Diego billboard and other spring releases. The 18 x 24 inch size frames easily and groups well in a wall of related editions. Its San Francisco theme gives it regional appeal for Bay Area collectors or anyone organizing work by location. As a signed, numbered edition of 450 originally priced at $45, it offers an accessible way to own a documented Fairey release. Completists assembling the consecutive-week 2011 run will find it a logical and affordable component.
Historical Context
SF Fire Escape Print belongs to Fairey's busy 2011 release calendar, issued one week after the Sunset & Vine billboard print and a week before the San Diego billboard, marking a deliberate cadence of weekly location-themed editions. By this point Fairey was an established studio operation whose public installations and urban subjects regularly generated collectible prints. The fire-escape imagery reflects his ongoing engagement with the textures of the built city, the walls, ladders, and surfaces that host street art, translated into his clean, high-contrast graphic idiom. This print exemplifies the mature middle period of his print program, where serial, geographically anchored releases let collectors follow his work city by city rather than only through his signature political icons.
FAQ
When was SF Fire Escape Print released?
It was published by Obey Giant and released on April 7, 2011. The print was issued as a signed and numbered first edition of 450 at 18 x 24 inches, priced at $45 with a limit of one per person or household at release.
What is the edition size?
The work is a signed and numbered first edition of 450 screen prints. According to the source, distribution included a one-per-person-or-household limit, consistent with Obey Giant's accessible-edition releases during this stretch of 2011.
What does the print depict?
The print references a San Francisco fire-escape subject, part of Fairey's group of location-tied 2011 editions. Its source theme data notes pop culture and portraits-and-legacy elements, indicating recognizable iconography folded into the urban architectural composition.
How does it relate to other 2011 prints?
It sits within a sequence of weekly 2011 location-named releases, falling between the Sunset & Vine billboard print and the San Diego billboard print. All share the same 18 x 24 inch format and edition of 450, making them natural companions in a collection.
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.