Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “George (Silver Version)”?
Artist Statement
18 x 24 inch screen print on cream Speckletone paper. Signed and numbered edition of 400. $65. Silver version will be available October 24, 2014 on www.georgeharrison.com
Summary
George (Silver Version) is a 2014 Shepard Fairey screen print portrait of George Harrison, published in connection with georgeharrison.com. It measures 18 x 24 inches and is a signed and numbered edition of 400 on cream Speckletone paper, at a $65 release price. The work exists in a Red Version and this Silver Version, with the Silver Version noted as available October 24, 2014 via georgeharrison.com. The portrait applies Fairey's graphic, poster-style treatment to the musician, blending his pop-culture collaboration work with his portraits-and-legacy approach to honoring influential figures.
Why It Matters
George (Silver Version) is part of Fairey's substantial body of music-icon portraits, here applied to George Harrison and released in coordination with the official georgeharrison.com platform, signaling an authorized collaboration rather than an unlicensed tribute. That official tie, indicated by the publisher field and release note in the source, matters to collectors who value provenance and estate-sanctioned projects. The existence of paired Red and Silver versions creates a natural set for completist collectors and reflects Fairey's frequent practice of issuing color variants to expand an edition's appeal. Applying his bold, propaganda-derived portrait language to a Beatle places the print at the intersection of his pop-culture and portraits-and-legacy themes, both noted in the source, and connects it to his long-running celebration of musicians who shaped the counterculture. At an edition of 400 and a $65 release price, it sits in the accessible tier of his portrait output. In a database, it documents how Fairey extends his recognizable visual brand to canonical musical figures through licensed collaborations, reinforcing his role as a portraitist of cultural legacy and adding a metallic color-variant entry to the catalog that collectors track alongside its red counterpart.
Collector Perspective
This portrait appeals to music memorabilia collectors and Beatles or George Harrison fans, as well as to Fairey collectors focused on his musician portraits. The official georgeharrison.com tie adds provenance appeal, and the paired Red and Silver versions invite completist collecting of both color variants. At a standard 18 x 24 inch size and accessible original price, it is approachable for newer buyers and displays well as a bold graphic portrait. It fits a collection organized around Fairey's portrait and music series and pairs naturally with his other musician portraits and collaboration prints. The metallic silver treatment gives this version a distinct visual character that distinguishes it from the red counterpart for collectors choosing between or seeking both.
Historical Context
George (Silver Version) sits within Fairey's extensive practice of portraying influential musicians, here honoring George Harrison through a collaboration tied to the official georgeharrison.com platform. Released in 2014, it reflects his pattern of partnering with estates and official channels to produce authorized music portraits, distinct from his street and political work. The Red and Silver color variants follow his recurring strategy of issuing multiple versions of a single image. Within his arc, the print belongs to a steady stream of music-icon portraits that celebrate figures central to rock and counterculture, applying his graphic poster style to legacy subjects. Its standard format and Speckletone paper align it with his typical mid-2010s editioned portrait output.
FAQ
What is George (Silver Version)?
It is a 2014 Shepard Fairey screen print portrait of George Harrison, released in connection with georgeharrison.com. It measures 18 x 24 inches on cream Speckletone paper and was a signed and numbered edition of 400 at a $65 release price. The Silver Version was noted as available October 24, 2014.
How does the Silver Version differ from the Red Version?
Per the source, the image exists in a Red Version and a Silver Version. This entry is the Silver Version, which the source states was available October 24, 2014 via georgeharrison.com. The two are color variants of the same portrait.
How large is the edition?
The source describes it as a signed and numbered edition of 400, measuring 18 x 24 inches on cream Speckletone paper, placing it in the accessible tier of Fairey's portrait editions.
Was this an official collaboration?
The source lists the publisher as georgeharrison.com and notes the Silver Version's release through that site, indicating an official, estate-connected project rather than an unlicensed tribute portrait.
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.