Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Zapata (2020 Teal)”?
Artist Statement
Zapata (Teal) 2020. 18 x 24 inches. Screen print on thick cream Speckletone paper. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 500. $75.
Summary
Zapata (2020 Teal) is a 2020 Shepard Fairey screen print measuring 18 x 24 inches on thick cream Speckletone paper. It was signed and issued in a numbered edition of 500. This teal colorway is part of a broader Zapata release that includes first-edition and HPM variants in red and teal. The source provides limited descriptive detail beyond the medium, dimensions, edition size, and colorway, so interpretation here is kept cautious and grounded in the available print specifications.
Why It Matters
Zapata (2020 Teal) is one colorway within Fairey's wider 2020 Zapata release, which spans a first edition and several hand-painted multiple (HPM) and standard variants in red and teal. The existence of multiple colorways and HPM versions indicates a print Fairey treated as a recurring, collectible image worth issuing in differentiated runs, a pattern that typically signals sustained interest. The teal screen-print edition of 500 sits in the accessible middle of his output at a $75 issue price. Because the source description is sparse, the deeper iconographic and political reading of the Zapata subject is not documented here, so claims are limited to what the record supports: a signed, numbered teal colorway in a moderate edition. For collectors, the value largely rests on completist appeal, acquiring a specific colorway within a multi-variant series, and on the recognizability of the Zapata image within Fairey's catalog. The piece is best understood as part of a family of related editions rather than as a standalone statement work.
Collector Perspective
This print mainly appeals to collectors pursuing colorway variations and those building out a complete Zapata grouping, since it exists alongside red and teal HPM and first-edition versions. The teal palette offers a distinct decorative option, and at 18 x 24 inches it is a standard, frameable size. The edition of 500 is moderate and the $75 issue price kept it accessible. With limited descriptive source material, collectors are buying primarily on the strength of the recognizable image, the specific colorway, and its place within the broader multi-variant release.
Historical Context
Zapata (2020 Teal) belongs to Fairey's 2020 studio output and to a multi-variant Zapata release issued in several colorways and HPM versions. The practice of producing alternate colorways and hand-finished editions is characteristic of how Fairey extends a successful image across collectible tiers. Beyond these production facts, the source offers little additional context, so the print is best situated as one entry within that variant family rather than tied to a specific documented event or campaign in this record.
FAQ
What colorway is this Zapata print?
This is the 2020 Teal colorway. The broader Zapata release also includes a first edition and HPM (hand-painted multiple) versions in red and teal, making teal one of several available variants.
What are the size and edition?
The screen print measures 18 x 24 inches on thick cream Speckletone paper. It is signed by Shepard Fairey and was issued in a numbered edition of 500 at $75.
Is this a hand-painted version?
No. This specific record is the standard screen-print teal edition of 500. Separate HPM (hand-painted multiple) versions in red and teal exist within the wider Zapata release.
Is the print signed?
Yes. According to the source, the Zapata (Teal) 2020 print is signed by Shepard Fairey and numbered within its edition of 500.
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.