Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Peaceful Protester”?
Artist Statement
Peaceful Protestor. 13 x 17 inches. Letterpress on cream cotton paper with hand-deckled edges. Numbered edition of 450. $65.
Summary
Peaceful Protester is a 2017 letterpress print by Shepard Fairey, published by Obey Giant. It measures 13 x 17 inches and was printed on cream cotton paper with hand-deckled edges as a numbered edition of 450. The image addresses themes of peace and protest, rendered in Fairey's signature graphic style. The hand-deckled cotton stock and letterpress process give the work a tactile, handmade quality distinct from his standard screen prints. The title and visual concept center on nonviolent demonstration as a form of resistance, consistent with the artist's longstanding engagement with peace and anti-war messaging.
Why It Matters
Peaceful Protester sits at the intersection of two threads that run through Shepard Fairey's career: peace advocacy and the celebration of grassroots civic action. By foregrounding the figure of the nonviolent demonstrator, the print elevates ordinary protest into iconography, a move Fairey has used repeatedly to make activism feel both heroic and accessible. The choice of letterpress on hand-deckled cream cotton paper signals a deliberate craft sensibility; rather than the flat poster look of much of his output, this edition rewards close looking and physical handling. For collectors, that material distinction matters, separating it from the broader run of screen prints from the same period. Released in 2017, a year of heightened political mobilization, the work reads as a quiet but pointed affirmation of peaceful resistance. Its modest edition of 450 and intimate scale make it an approachable entry point for newer collectors while still carrying the thematic weight that defines Fairey's most respected work. The print's message resists the cynicism of its moment, insisting that disciplined, nonviolent action remains a legitimate and dignified path.
Collector Perspective
This print appeals to collectors drawn to Fairey's peace and protest imagery who also value tactile printmaking. The letterpress process and hand-deckled cotton edges give it a handmade presence that frames well and rewards close viewing, making it a natural fit for collectors who prize craft alongside message. At 13 x 17 inches it is intimate in scale, suiting smaller wall spaces or a grouping with other peace-themed works. Its modest price point and edition of 450 make it accessible to newer buyers building a thematic collection around activism and nonviolence. Collectors assembling a focused set of Fairey's peace and anti-war prints will find it a coherent companion to dove and peace-guard imagery from adjacent years.
Historical Context
Peaceful Protester belongs to Fairey's prolific 2017 output, a period in which he produced a steady stream of editioned prints engaging directly with the political climate. By this point his peace and anti-war imagery had become a recurring pillar of his practice, building on years of dove, olive-branch, and protest motifs. The letterpress treatment connects it to a craft-oriented strand within Obey Giant's releases, where production method itself became part of the statement. Within his arc, the print reflects the mature phase in which Fairey moved fluidly between street-art urgency and gallery-grade editioned objects, using accessible price points to keep activist art in circulation among a broad audience rather than confined to collectors.
FAQ
What medium and paper is Peaceful Protester printed on?
It is a letterpress print on cream cotton paper with hand-deckled edges. The letterpress process and deckled cotton stock give the 13 x 17 inch work a tactile, handmade quality that distinguishes it from Fairey's standard screen prints, where the printing method itself becomes part of the object's appeal.
How large is the edition?
Peaceful Protester is a numbered edition of 450, published by Obey Giant in 2017. The edition size places it in the moderate range for Fairey's editioned prints from this period, neither his smallest nor largest releases.
What are the dimensions of the print?
The print measures 13 x 17 inches, an intimate scale well suited to smaller wall spaces or to grouping with other peace-themed works. The compact size also makes it a flexible piece for collectors with limited display room.
What theme does the print address?
Peaceful Protester centers on nonviolent demonstration and peace, consistent with Fairey's longstanding engagement with peace and anti-war messaging. The title and image elevate the figure of the peaceful demonstrator into iconography celebrating disciplined, nonviolent resistance.
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.