Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Sadistic Dog Walker (Diptych)”?
Artist Statement
I've made several images over the years addressing police brutality, and I think humor and absurdity help make such a heavy topic more digestible. There is a violent history of police dogs being used to attack civil rights protesters, which contrasts intensely with the blissful perspective of white dog owners who pamper their dogs and hire dog walkers. Some of us never have to think about how the police abuse their power more frequently in non-white and lower-income communities. This "Sadistic Dog Walker" image encourages us to be aware of the "two Americas." –Shepard Shepard's posters on police brutality have always been some of my favorite. From the "I'm gonna kick your ass and get away with it" piece to the "Sadistic Florist," which inspired me to bring forth the idea to Shepard on continuing that narrative. The Public servant with a subversive twist. The tongue-in-cheek tagline of "My Dog Walker Is A Dick" is the sugar that makes the bitter pill easier for the viewer to swallow… but it still has a bite to it! –Francisco Reyes Jr. PRINT DETAILS: Sadistic Dog Walker (Diptych). 24 x 33 inches. Screenprint on thick cream Speckletone paper. Signed by Francisco Reyes Jr. & Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 450. Sold as matching numbered sets of 2 prints. $190 plus shipping.
Summary
Sadistic Dog Walker (Diptych) is a 2021 Shepard Fairey screen print collaboration with Francisco Reyes Jr., published by Obey Giant. Sold as matching numbered sets of two prints, it measures 24 x 33 inches on thick cream Speckletone paper, signed by both artists, in a numbered edition of 450. The image addresses police brutality through humor and absurdity, contrasting the violent history of police dogs used against civil rights protesters with the pampered world of dog owners who hire dog walkers. A tongue-in-cheek tagline, "My Dog Walker Is A Dick," carries the message. Fairey frames it as a reminder of the "two Americas."
Why It Matters
Sadistic Dog Walker (Diptych) is a pointed entry in Fairey's long line of works confronting police brutality, distinguished by its collaborative authorship with Francisco Reyes Jr. and its diptych, two-print format. The piece uses humor and absurdity deliberately, as Fairey says, to make a heavy subject more digestible, contrasting the historical use of police dogs against civil rights protesters with the comfortable obliviousness of those who pamper their pets. That juxtaposition crystallizes his "two Americas" theme, the gap between communities that fear police power and those who never have to think about it. Reyes's accompanying statement situates the work within a lineage of Fairey's earlier police-brutality images, from "I'm gonna kick your ass and get away with it" to the "Sadistic Florist," framing this as a continuation of that narrative with a satirical "public servant with a subversive twist." The dual signatures and the unusual sold-as-a-set structure make it materially distinct from single-sheet editions. For collectors and researchers, the documented artist statements and the explicit reference chain to prior works give the print unusual interpretive depth, marking it as a deliberate addition to a recurring theme rather than a one-off.
Collector Perspective
This diptych appeals to collectors focused on Fairey's social-justice and police-accountability work, and to those who appreciate satirical edge balanced with graphic polish. The two-print, matching-numbered set format is itself a draw for collectors who value distinctive presentation and the challenge of displaying a paired work, and the larger 24 x 33 combined footprint makes a strong wall statement. Dual authorship with Francisco Reyes Jr. adds collaboration interest. At an edition of 450 sets it is moderately available among Fairey's signed editions. It fits well in groupings built around the "two Americas" theme, his ongoing police-brutality series, or his artist collaborations, and rewards collectors who like prints with a documented narrative lineage.
Historical Context
Sadistic Dog Walker continues a thread Fairey has revisited across years, images addressing police brutality, here extended in collaboration with Francisco Reyes Jr. Reyes's statement explicitly links it to Fairey's earlier "Sadistic Florist" and other police-themed pieces, positioning the diptych as a deliberate sequel within that narrative. Released in late 2021, it belongs to Fairey's concentrated run of justice-oriented editions during the period of heightened national attention to policing and racial inequality. The reference to police dogs used against civil rights protesters anchors the work in the historical memory of the civil rights era while pointing at present-day disparities. Its diptych format and shared authorship reflect Fairey's frequent collaborative model in these years, in which co-created editions both broadened his collaborators' visibility and let him develop recurring themes through new partnerships.
FAQ
Why is Sadistic Dog Walker sold as a diptych?
It is sold as matching numbered sets of two prints, forming a diptych. The combined work measures 24 x 33 inches and is a screenprint on thick cream Speckletone paper, signed by both Francisco Reyes Jr. and Shepard Fairey in a numbered edition of 450 at an original price of $190 plus shipping.
What is the artwork about?
Fairey describes it as addressing police brutality, using humor and absurdity to make a heavy topic more digestible. It contrasts the violent history of police dogs used against civil rights protesters with the pampered world of dog owners who hire dog walkers, underscoring his "two Americas" theme.
Who collaborated on this print?
Shepard Fairey created it in collaboration with Francisco Reyes Jr., who brought the idea to Fairey to continue the narrative of earlier police-brutality works like the "Sadistic Florist." Both artists signed the edition, and Reyes provided an accompanying statement about its tongue-in-cheek tagline.
What does the tagline mean?
The tagline "My Dog Walker Is A Dick" is described by Reyes as the sugar that makes the bitter pill easier to swallow, a tongue-in-cheek line that still carries a bite. It frames the public-servant figure with a subversive twist while keeping the serious subject approachable.
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.