What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Black On Black”?

Artist Statement

This print is sometimes known as "Giant Red and Navy" and was the first print produced by Shepard Fairey after he moved from Providence to San Diego.

Summary

Black On Black is a 1996 screen print published by Obey Giant, measuring 25 by 19 inches, with no edition size listed in the source. It is sometimes known as "Giant Red and Navy" and is significant as the first print Shepard Fairey produced after relocating from Providence to San Diego. The source provides only this brief context, so details about its specific imagery and message are limited. Its importance rests largely on this biographical marker: it documents the start of Fairey's San Diego chapter within his early OBEY work. The entry is written cautiously given the sparse source description.

Why It Matters

Black On Black carries a specific biographical significance that elevates it above a routine early edition: the source identifies it as the first print Fairey produced after moving from Providence to San Diego. That makes it a documented turning point in his geography and career, marking the start of the San Diego chapter that shaped his subsequent output. For collectors who organize Fairey's work around life milestones, this kind of first-after-a-move artifact has clear narrative value beyond its visual content. The alternate name "Giant Red and Navy" hints at a color-driven composition within his Giant iconography, though the source does not describe the imagery in detail, so claims about its message should stay modest. The absence of a listed edition size means its scarcity cannot be fixed from the source, and rarity should not be assumed. What the record reliably supports is its status as a transitional early work, bridging his East Coast origins and the West Coast base where the OBEY project matured. Within the 1996 cluster of early Giant prints, it stands out specifically for this relocation marker rather than for documented thematic ambition. Collectors of provenance and career chronology are its natural audience, valuing it as a primary-source signpost in Fairey's geographic and artistic trajectory.

Collector Perspective

This print appeals to collectors focused on biography and career milestones, since the source frames it as Fairey's first print after moving from Providence to San Diego. That transitional status gives it a clear story for anyone assembling a timeline of his development. The alternate name "Giant Red and Navy" suggests a color-forward Giant composition with display appeal. With no edition size listed, scarcity is unknown, so the draw is narrative rather than confirmed rarity. It fits naturally into a focused early-period grouping alongside other 1996 Giant prints. Buyers who value documented provenance and turning points will find it more compelling than its sparse description alone might suggest.

Historical Context

Dated 1996, Black On Black marks a concrete transition in Fairey's arc: the source calls it the first print he made after relocating from Providence to San Diego. That move opened the West Coast chapter during which the OBEY project expanded, making this a signpost work rather than a generic early edition. It sits within the mid-1990s Giant period, sharing the iconography of his other prints from this window, but its specific value lies in the relocation marker. With limited description and no listed edition size, its place in the arc is defined more by biography than by documented theme. It predates his propaganda aesthetic and political work, anchoring the start of his San Diego years.

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Related Works

Top (Vertical Face Set)1996 · Same-year 1996 early Obey Giant screen print from the same window.

Giant Heavy Metal1994 · Adjacent earliest-period Giant print bracketing this San Diego transition.

Four Giant Beatles1996 · Same-year 1996 OBEY-iconography first edition from the core early period.

Giant Power To The Posse1996 · Same-year early Giant first edition from this formative phase.

Giant Glow (First Edition)1997 · Nearby late-90s first edition continuing the early Giant series.

Join The Posse1997 · 1997 Obey Giant print extending the early Giant lineage.

Soldier Star1997 · Late-90s Obey Giant print from the same early collaborations and pop-culture vein.