Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Push Forward (Letterpress Edition)”?
Artist Statement
Equality and empowerment for ALL people regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation has been a cornerstone of my philosophy and a focus of my art for many years. I originally made my “Power and Equality” image in 2007 but updated it to this new “Push Forward” version as a reminder that until there is true equality, we must continue to push forward. This “Push Forward” print is released in conjunction with Robert Poulton’s Love Project in support of the fight for social justice and to help put an end to systemic racism. Proceeds from every “Push Forward” print go directly to organizations fighting for social justice, education and the arts. Robert is not only an activist and comrade, but a great artist and designer, so check out his other Love Project images and buy one in solidarity with the movement for racial justice! – Shepard PRINT DETAILS: Push Forward. 10 x 13 inches. Letterpress on cream cotton paper with hand-deckled edges. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 500. $60. Proceeds go to organizations fighting for social justice, education and the arts. Love Project publishing chop in lower left corner.
Summary
Push Forward (Letterpress Edition) is a 2021 print by Shepard Fairey released by Obey Giant in conjunction with Robert Poulton's Love Project. It updates Fairey's earlier Power and Equality image into a call for continued effort toward equality across race, gender, and sexual orientation. Printed letterpress on cream cotton paper with hand-deckled edges, it measures 10 x 13 inches and is a numbered edition of 500 signed by Shepard Fairey, with a Love Project publishing chop in the lower left corner. Issued at $60, proceeds were directed to organizations fighting for social justice, education, and the arts.
Why It Matters
Push Forward distills one of Fairey's core convictions, equality and empowerment for all people, into a compact, message-driven letterpress edition. Its lineage is notable: Fairey states he first created the underlying Power and Equality image in 2007 and revived it here as a reminder that the work of achieving true equality is unfinished. That continuity links the print to a decade-plus of his civil-rights imagery and gives it documentary value as a record of how he reactivates motifs in response to ongoing struggles. The collaboration with Robert Poulton's Love Project frames it within a broader artist-driven movement against systemic racism, and the dedication of proceeds to social-justice, education, and arts organizations underscores its activist intent rather than purely commercial purpose. The letterpress medium on hand-deckled cotton paper makes it a tactile, accessible object, and its modest size and price lower the barrier for collectors who want a directly political Fairey piece. For buyers, it offers a clear, text-forward statement work tied to a named cause and a documented collaboration.
Collector Perspective
This appeals to collectors of Fairey's civil-rights and social-justice work, activist-minded buyers, and those who value cause-linked editions. The hand-deckled cream cotton paper, Fairey signature, and Love Project publishing chop give it provenance, while the small 10 x 13 format suits intimate display or grouping with other message prints. At an accessible original price and an edition of 500, it is an approachable entry point for new collectors and a natural fit for collections themed around equality, justice, and Fairey's text-driven imagery. The connection to the Love Project and the donation of proceeds add a layer of meaning that resonates with collectors who prioritize the social mission behind a print as much as its aesthetics.
Historical Context
Push Forward sits within Fairey's sustained civil-rights output and his practice of updating earlier images for new moments, here reworking his 2007 Power and Equality design. Released in 2021, it reflects the post-2020 surge of art responding to systemic racism and the fight for social justice, and it shows Fairey collaborating with other artists through Robert Poulton's Love Project rather than working solo. The letterpress format on hand-deckled cotton paper situates it among Obey Giant's craft-oriented editions of the early 2020s, which complemented the studio's screenprints with smaller, donation-linked works. It exemplifies how Fairey used affordable, benefit-driven prints to keep recurring equality themes active across changing political contexts.
FAQ
What is the edition size of Push Forward?
It is a numbered edition of 500, signed by Shepard Fairey and published by Obey Giant in 2021 at an original price of $60. A Love Project publishing chop appears in the lower left corner of each print.
What is the connection to earlier work?
Fairey originally made his Power and Equality image in 2007 and updated it into this Push Forward version. He describes the change as a reminder that until there is true equality, the work must continue, linking the print to his long-running equality imagery.
Where did the proceeds go?
The print was released in conjunction with Robert Poulton's Love Project, and proceeds from every Push Forward print were directed to organizations fighting for social justice, education, and the arts, in support of efforts to end systemic racism.
What are the print's specifications?
Push Forward measures 10 x 13 inches and is a letterpress print on cream cotton paper with hand-deckled edges. The small format and letterpress process make it a tactile, accessible work compared with Fairey's larger screenprint editions.
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.