What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Paradise Lost”?

Artist Statement

I recently collaborated on this "Paradise Lost" print for Earth Day with my friend, art assistant, and fine artist Nicholas Bowers. Nic made the painting of a parrot, to which I added some of my work. It was a lot of fun combining our two styles! Here is what Nic has to say about the art: "In my recent work, I've been contemplating the hierarchy of humans within the animal kingdom and our relationship with the place we call home and the species who share that home. The multiple years of the pandemic reconnected me with nature and recaptured those moments when I had strayed away. The simple act of hiking with my son reminded me of the fantastic gift of mother nature's complicated yet simple pleasures. Earth was there, reminding me of her incredible force and vulnerable fragility. Yet, there's an ongoing disconnect between our roles within the pecking order. We have positioned ourselves at the top without understanding the responsibilities and repercussions. As much as we take from her, we should give back in double. So, for this Earth day, find a mountain trail or a beach blanket and let her remind you of why she should be protected. Our continual kinship will keep her in a state of balance." -Nicholas Bowers A portion of the revenue from these prints will go to Wild Woods Foundation in support of their programs to engage youth in nature and sustainability. Paradise Lost. 18 x 24 inches. Signed by Shepard Fairey and Nicholas Kyle Bowers. Numbered edition of 575. $80.

Summary

Paradise Lost is a 2022 Earth Day screen print collaboration between Shepard Fairey and fine artist Nicholas Kyle Bowers, published by Obey Giant. It measures 18 x 24 inches and was issued in a numbered edition of 575, signed by both artists, at $80. Bowers painted a parrot to which Fairey added his own elements, combining the two artists' styles. The work reflects on humanity's relationship with nature and our place within the animal kingdom. A portion of revenue supports the Wild Woods Foundation and its youth nature and sustainability programs.

Why It Matters

Paradise Lost is a genuine two-artist collaboration in which Nicholas Kyle Bowers contributed a parrot painting and Fairey overlaid his own graphic work, producing a hybrid image that fuses fine-art painting with Fairey's design sensibility. Released for Earth Day, the print foregrounds an environmental message about humanity's disrupted relationship with the natural world and our self-appointed place atop the animal kingdom, themes Bowers articulates directly in the accompanying statement. The charitable component, with a portion of revenue going to the Wild Woods Foundation to engage youth in nature and sustainability, gives the work an activist dimension beyond decoration. For collectors, the appeal lies in the rare visible blending of two distinct hands within Fairey's catalog, making it a documented collaboration rather than a Fairey solo image with a guest signature. The parrot subject is also visually distinctive against the more typographic and iconographic works elsewhere in his output. As an Earth Day release tied to a named conservation cause and a specific collaborating artist, it occupies a meaningful niche for collectors who value environmental advocacy, collaborative provenance, and stylistic crossover within Fairey's wider body of work.

Collector Perspective

This appeals to collectors of Fairey's environmental and collaboration prints, and to those drawn to its distinctive parrot imagery and the visible fusion of two artists' styles. The dual signature from Fairey and Nicholas Kyle Bowers, plus the Earth Day framing and Wild Woods Foundation support, will attract buyers who value cause-driven and collaborative works. At 18 x 24 inches in an edition of 575, it is accessible for mid-level collectors and displays well in nature-themed spaces. It fits a collection centered on Fairey's environmental output and pairs naturally with his other Earth Day and conservation prints, offering a more painterly, wildlife-focused note within that grouping.

Historical Context

Paradise Lost belongs to Fairey's environmental and Earth Day output, published by Obey Giant in 2022. It is notable as a collaboration with Nicholas Kyle Bowers, described as Fairey's friend, art assistant, and a fine artist, whose parrot painting forms the base of the image. Bowers frames the work around pandemic-era reconnection with nature and humanity's responsibilities within the ecosystem, situating the print in the broader cultural moment of renewed attention to the outdoors. The charitable tie to the Wild Woods Foundation aligns it with Fairey's recurring practice of pairing environmental prints with conservation causes, and the blended-styles approach extends his long history of cross-artist collaboration into a wildlife and sustainability context.

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Ocean Today Desert Tomorrow2022 · Same-year climate-and-environment paired print.

Desert Today Ocean Tomorrow2022 · Companion climate-and-environment print from 2022.