What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Dee Dee Ramone”?

Artist Statement

18 x 24 inch screen print. Signed and numbered edition of 450. Based on photos by Jenny Lens. I have been a fan of the Ramones since I got into punk rock in 1984. The Ramones always impressed me with their style, blending a sense of humor with aggression and pop melody. I did not realize Dee Dee Ramone made art until a few years ago, but it does not surprise me that Dee Dee mixes the same sensibilities in his art that the Ramones had as a band. In Dee Dee’s art there is a connection to Warhol’s Pop art, Basquiat’s street scrawl, and Punk’s sense of humor and antagonism that feels like an uninhibited visual manifestation of the fun and bizarre world of Dee Dee. I feel very lucky that Subliminal Projects can showcase these paintings and share the visual dimension of Dee Dee’s remarkable creativity. (Shepard Fairey, 2012)

Summary

Dee Dee Ramone is a signed and numbered 18 x 24 inch screen print published by Subliminal Projects in 2012 in an edition of 450, priced at $50. Based on photos by Jenny Lens, the print honors the late Ramones bassist Dee Dee Ramone, whom Fairey also celebrates as a visual artist. In an accompanying statement, Fairey traces his fandom to discovering punk in 1984 and connects Dee Dee's art to Warhol's Pop sensibility, Basquiat's street scrawl, and punk's humor and antagonism. The work pairs Fairey's graphic portrait style with his lifelong engagement with punk music and counterculture.

Why It Matters

This print is a personal tribute rather than a commercial commission, and Fairey's own statement makes that explicit: he traces his fandom back to getting into punk rock in 1984 and frames Dee Dee Ramone as a multidisciplinary creative whose visual art deserves recognition. That framing matters because it positions the print within Fairey's deep, career-long relationship to punk, a foundation that shaped his DIY aesthetic and street-art ethos. Built from photos by Jenny Lens, a foundational documentarian of the punk scene, the work also acknowledges the photographers and archivists who preserved that era. The collaboration with Subliminal Projects, Fairey's own Los Angeles gallery, underscores its place in his curatorial mission to showcase artists he admires. For collectors, the print is a strong example of Fairey's music portraiture, a category that links his fine-art output to the album covers, gig posters, and band tributes that run throughout his career. The edition of 450 keeps it accessible while its specific homage to a beloved punk figure gives it cultural resonance well beyond a generic celebrity portrait, anchoring it firmly in music and counterculture themes.

Collector Perspective

Dee Dee Ramone draws collectors at the intersection of street art and punk-rock music history, especially Ramones fans and those who collect Fairey's musician portraits. Fairey's heartfelt artist statement and the Jenny Lens photographic source add provenance and narrative appeal that reward research-minded collectors. At an original $50 in an edition of 450, it was an accessible release, and its 18 x 24 inch format displays easily within a wall of music tributes or punk memorabilia. It pairs naturally with Fairey's other band and musician prints, helping build a focused music-portrait sub-collection. The Subliminal Projects imprint also appeals to collectors who track works tied to Fairey's own gallery.

Historical Context

Released in 2012 through Subliminal Projects, Fairey's Los Angeles gallery, this print reflects his enduring ties to punk rock, which he dates in his statement to 1984. Music portraiture is a throughline in Fairey's career, connecting his early DIY poster and sticker work to later fine-art editions celebrating bands and musicians he admires. By using photographs by Jenny Lens, a key chronicler of the punk era, the work also situates itself within the documentary history of that scene. Fairey's statement explicitly links Dee Dee's painting to Warhol's Pop art and Basquiat's street scrawl, placing the tribute within a broader lineage of cross-pollination between fine art, Pop, and street culture that Fairey himself navigates.

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Related Works

Vive Le Rock2012 · Same-year music and counterculture print closely tied to punk and rock subject matter.

Keith Morris (4 Color)2013 · Portrait of another punk figure, paralleling this Dee Dee Ramone tribute.

Iggy Pop Canvas Print2010 · Companion musician portrait in Fairey's punk and rock series.

Party At The Moontower2011 · Shares the music and counterculture theme from the same era.

Black Sabbath Cross (Silver / Black)2013 · Music-themed band tribute print adjacent in subject and period.

Dance Floor Riot Box Set2011 · Music-focused release supporting a punk and counterculture sub-collection.