Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Obey Fire Sale”?
Artist Statement
My Obey Fire Sale print is a comment on the challenges any individual faces pushing for environmental and climate responsibility, especially when confronted with the massive power of fossil fuel industries whose short-sighted, profit-driven tactics include lobbying and bribing politicians who are supposed to work for the citizenry. The term "fire sale" means the liquidation of goods damaged in a fire, or it can mean a rush to sell off inventory before a bankruptcy. I was actually finished with this art before the record number of California wildfires broke out, but the literal fires, which climatologists say are a symptom of climate change, only amplify what I meant as a metaphorical critique of our short-sightedness which will lead to fire sales in low lying areas from Louisiana, to Florida, to Bangladesh. We need to vote and put pressure on the politicians and the corporations. The future depends on it! I'm donating proceeds from this print to The Climate Reality Project. Thanks for caring! -Shepard Obey Fire Sale. 18 x 24 inches. Screen print on cream Speckle Tone paper. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 550. $55.
Summary
Obey Fire Sale is a 2018 Shepard Fairey screenprint, 18 x 24 inches on cream Speckle Tone paper, published by Obey Giant. It is signed and numbered in an edition of 550, released at $55. The print comments on the difficulty of pushing for climate responsibility against the power of fossil-fuel industries, using the double meaning of 'fire sale' to critique short-sighted, profit-driven choices. Fairey notes he finished the art before record California wildfires, which he sees as amplifying his metaphor about low-lying areas. He pledged to donate proceeds to The Climate Reality Project, framing the work as a call to vote and pressure politicians and corporations.
Why It Matters
Obey Fire Sale is one of Fairey's pointed environmental statements, pairing his graphic clarity with a developed argument about climate and corporate power. As he explains, the print critiques the influence of fossil-fuel industries whose profit-driven tactics include lobbying and bribing politicians, and it plays on the term 'fire sale,' the liquidation of fire-damaged goods or a rush to sell before bankruptcy, as a metaphor for short-sighted choices. The timing sharpens it: Fairey notes he finished the art before record California wildfires, which climatologists link to climate change, so the literal fires amplified his metaphor about future losses from Louisiana to Florida to Bangladesh. For collectors, the work matters as a clear, cause-driven piece backed by action, Fairey states he donated proceeds to The Climate Reality Project, which ties the object to real climate advocacy. The edition of 550 keeps it accessible to a broad audience of environmentally engaged buyers. Its call to vote and pressure politicians and corporations situates it within his activist output. Within a collection it anchors an environmental grouping and exemplifies how Fairey fuses message, metaphor, and civic appeal.
Collector Perspective
Obey Fire Sale appeals to collectors who build around environmental and climate themes and who value art tied to advocacy. The stated donation of proceeds to The Climate Reality Project gives it cause-driven appeal, and its accessible original price and edition of 550 make it attainable for a wide audience. The 18 x 24 format frames easily and works well in a home, office, or climate-themed collection wall, pairing naturally with Fairey's other environmental editions. It suits buyers drawn to clear messaging and topical metaphor as much as to graphic style. Provenance-minded collectors will value that it is signed and numbered through Obey Giant. It is best understood as a meaningful, display-friendly environmental statement rather than a high-end centerpiece.
Historical Context
Obey Fire Sale sits within the environmental and climate strand of Fairey's late-2010s work, when he regularly produced cause-tied editions with proceeds directed to advocacy groups. Here he names The Climate Reality Project as the beneficiary and frames the piece as part of a broader call to vote and pressure politicians and corporations. The print's metaphor, built on the double meaning of 'fire sale' and amplified by record California wildfires, reflects an artist responding in near-real time to environmental crisis. It belongs among his related environment-and-climate editions that critique fossil-fuel power and short-sightedness. As an established activist artist, Fairey uses this accessible screenprint to combine clear messaging with civic action, reinforcing his ongoing role in climate-focused art during this period.
FAQ
What does Obey Fire Sale critique?
Per Fairey, it addresses the difficulty of pushing for climate responsibility against the power of fossil-fuel industries, whose profit-driven tactics he says include lobbying and bribing politicians. The 'fire sale' term doubles as a metaphor for short-sighted choices.
Is the title connected to the California wildfires?
Fairey says he finished the art before the record California wildfires broke out, but notes that those fires, which climatologists tie to climate change, amplified his metaphor about future losses in low-lying areas from Louisiana to Florida to Bangladesh.
Did proceeds support a cause?
Yes. According to the source, Fairey states he donated proceeds from this print to The Climate Reality Project, and he frames the work as a call to vote and pressure politicians and corporations on climate.
What are its specifications?
It is an 18 x 24 inch screenprint on cream Speckle Tone paper, signed by Shepard Fairey and numbered in an edition of 550. It was published by Obey Giant in 2018 at an original release price of $55.
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.