What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Scale Tipping”?

Artist Statement

SCALE TIPPING PRINT I have frequently talked about the many problems created by the current campaign finance structure. Corporate donations distort their influence in politics and corrupt our democracy. This is an issue not many Americans seem interested in, but it effects all Americans by insuring that corporate interests are put before the interests of the average person. Genuine democracy should guarantee that politicians create the greatest good for the greatest number of people, but that idea has eroded with the favors owed by politicians to corporations in exchange for their contributions. A portion of the proceeds from the “Scale Tipping Services” print will go to two organizations who are fighting against political corruption, and for campaign finance reform. They are rootstrikers.org and unitedrepublic.org. Check out their sites and the quotes below from Rootstrikers Lawrence Lessig and United Republic’s Josh Silver. These orgs are doing great work, so please support them! Thanks for caring. -Shepard Scale Tipping 18 x 24 inch screen print. Signed and numbered edition of 450. $55. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to rootstrikers.org and unitedrepublic.org. Release date: April 29, 2014

Summary

Scale Tipping is a 2014 screen print by Shepard Fairey, published by Obey Giant in a signed and numbered first edition of 450 at 18 x 24 inches, priced at $55. The print addresses the corrupting influence of money in politics, focusing on campaign finance and corporate donations that, in Fairey's view, distort democracy and put corporate interests ahead of ordinary Americans. Per the source, a portion of the proceeds was donated to rootstrikers.org and unitedrepublic.org, two organizations fighting political corruption and advocating for campaign finance reform.

Why It Matters

Scale Tipping is a focused political statement on one of Fairey's recurring concerns: the corrupting role of money in American democracy. The source lays out his argument clearly, that corporate donations distort political influence and guarantee corporate interests are placed before those of the average person, eroding the democratic ideal of the greatest good for the greatest number. This places the print squarely within his democracy-and-voting and corporate-critique work, themes that thread through his catalog. Its activist intent is concrete: proceeds were shared with rootstrikers.org and unitedrepublic.org, organizations the source identifies as fighting political corruption and pushing for campaign finance reform, with Fairey even pointing collectors toward statements from Rootstrikers' Lawrence Lessig and United Republic's Josh Silver. That direct linkage to named reform groups gives the work documentary weight as a piece of issue advocacy, not just a graphic. The edition of 450 keeps it accessible. For collectors, Scale Tipping is valuable as part of Fairey's civic-minded output, a print that articulates a specific policy critique rather than a general slogan, and one that pairs naturally with his other works on corporate power and democratic erosion.

Collector Perspective

This print appeals to collectors who gravitate toward Fairey's overtly political and civic work, particularly themes of money in politics, corporate power, and democratic reform. The documented donation to rootstrikers.org and unitedrepublic.org gives mission-minded buyers a clear cause connection, while the specific policy framing rewards collectors who value substance over slogan. At 18 x 24 inches it frames easily and integrates into a politically themed grouping alongside his corporate-critique and democracy prints. The edition of 450 and the modest $55 release price kept it accessible to entry- and mid-level collectors. It displays as a conversation piece, anchoring a wall focused on Fairey's activism, and complements his broader catalog of American political commentary.

Historical Context

Released April 29, 2014, Scale Tipping belongs to Fairey's politically engaged mid-2010s period, when campaign finance, corporate influence, and democratic integrity were recurring subjects in his releases. The source ties the print to the campaign finance reform movement, donating proceeds to rootstrikers.org and unitedrepublic.org and citing reform advocates Lawrence Lessig and Josh Silver. This situates the work within a broader cultural debate over money in politics that intensified in the years after the Citizens United era. Within Fairey's arc, it exemplifies his pattern of pairing pointed policy critiques with concrete support for advocacy organizations, reinforcing the civic core of his practice.

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