What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Open Minds”?

Artist Statement

This "Open Minds" print references the language used by the powerful fuel industry lobby to soften political and public resistance to fracking. Fracking is a form of gas extraction which beyond the carbon impact of the gas itself, contaminates groundwater, pollutes the air, and creates strains on water resources because of the high volume of water required for the fracking process. Open-mindedness about any of those detrimental impacts of fracking and other fossil fuel extraction is absurd if one cares about the environment, air and water quality, and global warming. Powerful corporations and their lobbyists spend exorbitant sums to distract from and discredit the science-based conversation about the environment. I'm all for open minds and open eyes when it comes to putting science and the welfare of the planet before corporate profits. A portion of the proceeds from this print will benefit Greenpeace to support its work to enhance environmental protections and combat climate change. – Shepard Open Minds. 36 x 24 inches. Screen print on thick cream Speckletone paper. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 675. $95. Proceeds go to Greenpeace.

Summary

Open Minds is a 2022 Shepard Fairey screen print, 36 x 24 inches on thick cream Speckletone paper, signed and numbered in an edition of 675 and published by Obey Giant. Priced at $95 on release, the work critiques the fossil-fuel industry's language used to soften resistance to fracking. Fairey explains the print targets how powerful corporations and lobbyists spend large sums to distract from the environmental harms of fracking and other extraction, including groundwater contamination, air pollution, and water strain. He frames true open-mindedness as putting science and the planet before corporate profits, and notes a portion of proceeds benefits Greenpeace.

Why It Matters

Open Minds is one of Fairey's most pointed pieces of environmental satire, turning the persuasive language of the fuel-industry lobby back on itself. Rather than a general nature image, it is a targeted corporate-critique print: Fairey names fracking specifically and lists its harms, from contaminated groundwater to air pollution and strained water resources. The 'open minds' phrasing he reclaims, arguing that real open-mindedness means privileging science and planetary welfare over corporate profit. For collectors, this makes the work a strong example of his propaganda-inspired approach, where a slogan and bold graphic design carry an argument. The larger 36 x 24 inch horizontal format gives it commanding wall presence relative to his standard 18 x 24 prints. The stated Greenpeace benefit reinforces the alignment between message and act that defines his cause-driven editions. As a signed, numbered screen print of 675, it is a representative anchor for any collection focused on his climate and anti-corporate output, and its explicit subject gives it lasting documentary and interpretive value within his catalog.

Collector Perspective

Open Minds appeals to collectors who favor Fairey's overtly political, propaganda-style work over his purely decorative prints, especially those interested in climate and anti-corporate messaging. The wide 36 x 24 inch format makes it a centerpiece-scale display piece. At 675 signed and numbered impressions it is one of the more available editions in this group, which keeps it accessible to a range of buyers, while the Greenpeace association adds appeal for cause-minded collectors. It pairs naturally with his other fossil-fuel and environmental critique prints and fits a themed grouping examining corporate power and climate.

Historical Context

Open Minds belongs to Fairey's early-2020s wave of environmental and anti-corporate prints, many of which directed proceeds to Greenpeace and were printed on sustainable cream Speckletone paper. Released in February 2022, it extends his long practice of co-opting and subverting the rhetoric of power, a technique rooted in his propaganda-inspired aesthetic, here applied to fossil-fuel lobbying around fracking. Within his arc it shows the mature artist using a specific policy target rather than a broad slogan, situating his graphic activism firmly in contemporary climate debate.

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Related Works

New Clear Power2022 · Same-year energy-and-power critique closely aligned with the fracking theme.

No Bees No Honey2022 · Same-year environmental print warning of ecological harm.

Mother Nature On The Run2020 · Earlier climate print in the same environmental advocacy vein.

Obey Fire Sale2018 · Environmental print critiquing exploitation of the planet for profit.

Handle With Care2024 · Later environmental print continuing his climate-protection messaging.

Bedtime For Democracy2021 · Adjacent critique of concentrated power and its public consequences.