Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “God Save The Queen”?
Artist Statement
18 x 24 inch screen print. Signed and numbered edition of 450. $55.
Summary
God Save The Queen is a 2012 screen print published by Obey Giant, signed and numbered in an edition of 450, measuring 18 x 24 inches. The source record provides the medium, dimensions, edition size, and a price of $55, but offers no description of the imagery beyond the title. The work was released in September 2012 as part of Fairey's collaboration and pop-culture output from that period.
Why It Matters
God Save The Queen carries a title long associated with punk and music history, signaling Fairey's continued engagement with the visual language of rock and counterculture that runs through much of his 2012 output. While the source record is limited to production facts, the title alone places the print in a lineage of music-referencing work that defines this stretch of his catalog. As a signed and numbered edition of 450 at an accessible $55 release price, it represents the kind of mid-volume screen print Fairey issued steadily through this period, designed to reach a broad collector base rather than function as a scarce showpiece. Its value lies in how it fits a larger body of music and pop-culture prints, contributing to the breadth of Fairey's catalog. Collectors interested in his music-adjacent and collaboration work will recognize it as part of a recognizable thematic thread, even though the record itself does not detail the specific imagery or any collaboration credits.
Collector Perspective
This print suits collectors drawn to Fairey's music and pop-culture material and those who appreciate the punk and rock associations the title evokes. At its $55 release price and an edition of 450, it sits in an accessible tier that makes it approachable for newer collectors building a themed grouping. It works well displayed alongside other 2012 music-referencing prints and contributes range to a collection focused on Fairey's collaboration period. Because the source provides limited detail on the imagery, buyers should rely on the title and era for context rather than a documented narrative, but it remains a coherent fit for a music- or collaboration-themed wall.
Historical Context
Released in September 2012 under Obey Giant, God Save The Queen belongs to Fairey's busy music-and-collaboration phase, when he issued numerous signed and numbered screen prints in editions of several hundred. The title resonates with punk and rock history, consistent with Fairey's lifelong borrowing from music culture. Within his arc, this period shows him producing accessible mid-edition prints in steady succession, often tied to songs, bands, or cultural references, and this work fits that pattern even though the record does not specify the exact subject or any collaborator.
FAQ
What is the edition size of God Save The Queen?
It was published by Obey Giant in 2012 as a signed and numbered screen print in an edition of 450.
What are the dimensions and medium?
The work is an 18 x 24 inch screen print, signed and numbered, according to the source record.
What was the release price?
The source record lists a release price of $55 for this 2012 screen print.
Does the record describe the imagery?
The source provides production details (medium, size, edition, price) but no description of the specific imagery, so context is drawn from the title and the 2012 release period rather than a documented narrative.
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.