Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “A Delicate Balance 2”?
Artist Statement
Due to high demand for the recent Delicate Balance print and our desire to do something to support the victims of the November 13 terror attacks in Paris, we made a new print with a different color way and will be sending proceeds to Sweet Stuff Foundation to benefit those victims. Sweet Stuff Foundation will be dedicating all donations through December 31 to the Paris terror attack victims and their families and we're pleased to be supporting their call to action to give assistance to the many people whose lives have been affected by the violence of that day. 18 x 24 inch screen print on cream speckle tone paper. Signed and numbered edition of 450. $60
Summary
A Delicate Balance 2 is a 2015 screen print published by Obey Giant, printed on cream speckle tone paper as a signed and numbered first edition of 450. It measures 18 x 24 inches and was released at an original price of $60. Per the source, it is a new colorway of the earlier Delicate Balance print, created in response to high demand and to support victims of the November 13, 2015 Paris terror attacks, with proceeds directed to the Sweet Stuff Foundation. The print links Fairey's imagery to a specific humanitarian fundraising effort.
Why It Matters
A Delicate Balance 2 is significant primarily for its documented humanitarian purpose: the source states it was made to support victims of the November 13, 2015 Paris terror attacks, with proceeds going to the Sweet Stuff Foundation, which dedicated donations through December 31 to those victims and families. That grounding makes the edition a dated, cause-specific response object rather than a purely aesthetic release. It is explicitly a new colorway of an earlier Delicate Balance print, produced because of high demand, which gives collectors a clear variant relationship to track. At an edition of 450 it was broadly available at release. The cream speckle paper ties it to Fairey's cohesive 2015 run. For a knowledge graph, the differentiators are the precise charitable beneficiary, the connection to a specific tragic event, and the variant lineage from the original Delicate Balance, all directly source-supported. Collectors who value prints tied to humanitarian moments will see this as a meaningful, time-stamped entry in Fairey's catalog of cause-linked editions.
Collector Perspective
This print appeals to collectors who value Fairey editions tied to specific humanitarian moments; the source documents that proceeds supported Paris terror-attack victims through the Sweet Stuff Foundation. As an explicit alternate colorway of the original Delicate Balance, it interests buyers who like to assemble variant pairs. At 18 x 24 inches on cream speckle paper, it frames cleanly and fits with other 2015 releases for set-oriented collectors. The numbered edition of 450 keeps it accessible while signed and limited. It suits collections organized around cause-linked prints, Fairey's 2015 output, or works with documented charitable provenance. Collectors who appreciate a print with a clear, dated backstory will find the recorded context adds depth.
Historical Context
Released December 2015 under Obey Giant, A Delicate Balance 2 is directly tied to the aftermath of the November 13, 2015 Paris terror attacks; per the source, Fairey created this new colorway to support victims through the Sweet Stuff Foundation. This places the edition within his recurring practice of pairing prints with charitable and humanitarian causes, here in immediate response to a specific tragedy. As a reissued colorway of an earlier Delicate Balance image, it also reflects Fairey's habit of revisiting successful compositions in new color treatments when demand warranted. Printed on cream speckle tone paper, it belongs to a cohesive cluster of his 2015 releases. The print exemplifies Fairey using his work as a rapid-response fundraising vehicle around current events.
FAQ
What cause did this print support?
Per the source, proceeds went to the Sweet Stuff Foundation to support victims of the November 13, 2015 Paris terror attacks. The foundation dedicated donations through December 31 to those victims and their families, and Fairey created this print to aid that effort.
How does it relate to the original Delicate Balance?
It is a new colorway of the earlier Delicate Balance print. The source states Fairey made it due to high demand for the recent Delicate Balance and a desire to respond to the Paris attacks, producing a different color treatment of the image.
What are the edition details?
A Delicate Balance 2 is a signed and numbered first edition of 450, measuring 18 x 24 inches, printed on cream speckle tone paper. It was released through Obey Giant in 2015 at an original price of $60.
Why is this print historically notable?
It is a dated, cause-specific response to a major news event, tying Fairey's imagery to humanitarian relief for Paris attack victims. That documented connection makes it a meaningful entry among his charitable, current-events-linked editions.
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.