Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Rage And Rapture North America (Red)”?
Artist Statement
I've been a Blondie fan since I was nine-years-old and I've always admired their courage to play music in styles ranging from punk to reggae, to hip-hop, to pop. I've collaborated with Debbie Harry and Chris Stein on a couple of projects, but I was incredibly honored to be asked to design the newest Blondie album package for their album Pollinator, which by the way, is excellent. As an additional art component to the actual album package, I also did the tour posters for a few legs of their tour in support of the album. I have 150 of each print signed and numbered for sale on my website ObeyGiant.com, and these are the only signed and numbered prints that will be available. Be sure to listen to Pollinator if you haven't already! – Shepard Rage and Rapture North America (Red). 18 x 24 inches. Screen print on cream Speckle Tone Paper. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 150. $45
Summary
Rage And Rapture North America (Red) is a 2017 screenprint on cream Speckle Tone paper, 18 x 24 inches, signed by Shepard Fairey and numbered in an edition of 150, published by Obey Giant. It is one of Fairey's Blondie tour posters created alongside his design for the band's album Pollinator, referencing the Rage and Rapture North American tour. A Blondie fan since age nine, Fairey notes his collaborations with Debbie Harry and Chris Stein and states these are the only signed and numbered prints of the image that will be available, with 150 made for sale through ObeyGiant.com.
Why It Matters
Rage And Rapture North America (Red) is part of Fairey's Blondie Pollinator collaboration, rooted in his design of the band's 2017 album package and his documented partnership with Debbie Harry and Chris Stein. As a tour poster tied to the Rage and Rapture North American tour, it captures a specific chapter of Blondie's touring history while carrying the authority of Fairey's authorship. The small edition of 150 makes it comparatively limited among his 2017 prints, and his explicit statement that these are the only signed and numbered prints of the image restricts the supply of authenticated examples. The work sits within a coherent Pollinator group alongside Bitches Are Back! and Live At The Roundhouse, supporting set-based collecting. For Blondie fans and Fairey music collectors, it offers a desirable combination of band history, a real artist collaboration, and a small signed edition. Its graphic, poster-driven design makes it immediately legible as Fairey's work while documenting a concrete touring event, giving it both decorative and historical value within his music catalog.
Collector Perspective
This print appeals to Fairey's music collectors and Blondie fans, with the documented Pollinator collaboration boosting crossover interest. Its small edition of 150 attracts collectors who favor lower edition counts, and its tour-poster format suits music rooms and band-art collections. At 18 x 24 inches it frames easily and pairs naturally with the companion Pollinator prints, encouraging completion of the set with Bitches Are Back! and Live At The Roundhouse. Signed and numbered, it offers authenticity reassurance. For collectors assembling a Blondie or band-collaboration grouping, it is a logical anchor, and Fairey's note that these are the only signed and numbered prints of the image strengthens its appeal to completists seeking authoritative tour editions.
Historical Context
Rage And Rapture North America (Red) derives from Fairey's 2017 Blondie collaboration centered on the album Pollinator, for which he designed the album package and produced tour posters for several tour legs. This poster references the Rage and Rapture North American tour specifically. Within his career, it continues his long practice of creating art for musicians he admires, deepened here by prior work with Debbie Harry and Chris Stein. The limited edition of 150 reflects the tour-tied, restricted nature of the release. Alongside Bitches Are Back! and Live At The Roundhouse, it completes a discrete Pollinator-era cluster within Fairey's broader music output, showing how his concert and album design regularly converts into collectible fine-art prints.
FAQ
What tour does this print reference?
Rage And Rapture North America (Red) is a Blondie tour poster referencing the Rage and Rapture North American tour. Fairey created it alongside his design for the band's album Pollinator and posters for several legs of the supporting tour.
How limited is this print?
It was issued as 150 signed and numbered prints. Fairey states these are the only signed and numbered prints of the image that will be available, sold through ObeyGiant.com, making it a limited 2017 release.
Did Fairey collaborate with Blondie?
Yes. A fan since age nine, Fairey writes that he collaborated with Debbie Harry and Chris Stein, designed the Pollinator album package, and produced the tour posters of which this print is one.
What are the size and medium?
It is a screenprint on cream Speckle Tone paper measuring 18 x 24 inches, signed by Shepard Fairey. Published by Obey Giant in 2017, its listed original price was $45.
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.