Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “The Music Of David Lynch”?
Artist Statement
I’m a big fan of David Lynch’s movies, art, and music so I was excited to be asked to create an image for the David Lynch Foundation, his Transcendental Meditation organization. This is the second time that I was asked to make something for the foundation, I also did the image for the David Lynch Foundation benefit concert featuring Paul McCartney at Radio City Music Hall back in 2009. I think David is a unique personality as well as someone with a unique look. It is great to try to capture him in an illustration because he is such an icon. This is a solid organization to support, so if you purchase the print consider it as a win-win, you get a poster and support a worthwhile cause. The lineup for “The Music of David Lynch” is awesome, so check it out next Wednesday, April 1 at The Ace Theater in downtown Los Angeles. There are a very limited number of the VIP tickets left. If you’re interested check it out here. -Shepard 18 x 24 inch screen print on cream speckle tone paper. Signed and numbered edition of 2100. $55. Limit 1 per person/household. Release date: April 1, 2015.
Summary
The Music Of David Lynch is a 2015 screen print published by Obey Giant, created for the David Lynch Foundation, Lynch's Transcendental Meditation organization. The 18 x 24 inch print on cream speckle tone paper portrays director and artist David Lynch in Fairey's illustrative style, made to support a benefit concert of the same name held April 1, 2015, at The Ace Theater in downtown Los Angeles. It is signed and numbered in an edition of 2100 and was released at $55 with a limit of one per person or household.
Why It Matters
This portrait pairs Fairey's admiration for David Lynch as a filmmaker, artist, and musician with a benefit purpose, channeling sales toward the David Lynch Foundation and its Transcendental Meditation work. Fairey notes it was his second project for the foundation, following a 2009 image for a benefit concert featuring Paul McCartney at Radio City Music Hall, which situates the print within an ongoing relationship rather than a one-off. As a portrait, it captures a figure Fairey calls a unique personality with a distinctive look, fitting his broader Portraits and Legacy practice of immortalizing cultural icons. For collectors, the larger edition of 2100 makes it relatively accessible, and Fairey explicitly frames the purchase as a win-win: a poster plus support for a cause. Its appeal rests on the convergence of a beloved cult figure, a documented benefit context, and Fairey's recognizable portrait treatment, making it a desirable crossover piece for fans of Lynch, of cause-driven art, and of Fairey's icon portraits alike.
Collector Perspective
This print draws collectors who follow David Lynch and those who collect Fairey's portraits of cultural icons, as well as buyers attracted to its benefit-concert context supporting the David Lynch Foundation. The larger edition of 2100 and $55 release price make it an accessible entry, suited to fans rather than only high-end collectors. As a bold portrait on cream speckletone paper, it displays well in a music, film, or pop-culture grouping. It fits a thematic collection of Fairey portraits or cause-related releases, and the documented tie to a specific Los Angeles benefit concert adds narrative value beyond the image.
Historical Context
The Music Of David Lynch fits Fairey's well-established practice of portraying cultural icons in service of causes he supports. The source notes it was his second piece for the David Lynch Foundation, after a 2009 image for a benefit featuring Paul McCartney at Radio City Music Hall, marking a continuing collaboration with Lynch's Transcendental Meditation organization. Released in 2015 to coincide with an April 1 benefit concert at The Ace Theater in Los Angeles, it reflects how Fairey routinely tied print releases to live events and philanthropic efforts during this period. As an icon portrait from the Modern Activism era of his catalog, it extends his long-running interest in honoring distinctive cultural figures.
FAQ
Who is depicted in this print?
The print portrays director, artist, and musician David Lynch. Fairey created it for the David Lynch Foundation, Lynch's Transcendental Meditation organization, and describes Lynch as a unique personality and an icon with a distinctive look that was great to capture in an illustration.
What cause does the print support?
According to Fairey, the print supports the David Lynch Foundation. It was made to coincide with a benefit concert, "The Music of David Lynch," held April 1, 2015, at The Ace Theater in downtown Los Angeles. Fairey calls the purchase a win-win: a poster plus support for a worthwhile cause.
What are the edition details?
The Music Of David Lynch is an 18 x 24 inch screen print on cream speckle tone paper, signed and numbered in an edition of 2100. It was released at $55 in 2015 with a limit of one per person or household.
Had Fairey worked with the foundation before?
Yes. Fairey notes this was the second time he was asked to make something for the David Lynch Foundation. He previously created the image for the foundation's benefit concert featuring Paul McCartney at Radio City Music Hall in 2009.
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.