Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall”?
Artist Statement
I've been a Bob Dylan fan most of my adult life, but I'm far from being obsessive. Dylan has a huge catalog, but a good bit of it is not in the sweet spot of my taste. However, the good stuff is REALLY good and much of it is incredibly important to the evolution of modern music. I made a portrait of Dylan in 2010, and I thought that maybe that'd be enough. I sometimes forget how significant Dylan is, but watching the biopic "A Complete Unknown" was a re-invigorating jolt not only for my admiration of Dylan, but my belief that art can shape ideas and influence culture. Dylan's protest, or at least social commentary songs, are astoundingly powerful. Dylan is incredible with words and serves as the people's poet in his best work. The examples are many, but some of my favorite Dylan songs are The Times They Are A-Changin', Masters of War, Hurricane, Subterranean Homesick Blues, With God on Our Side, and this print's namesake... A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall. Check out just some of the Hard Rain's lyrics: Oh, what did you see, my darling young one? I saw a newborn baby with wild wolves all around it I saw a highway of diamonds with nobody on it I saw a black branch with blood that kept drippin' I saw a room full of men with their hammers a-bleedin' I saw a white ladder all covered with water I saw ten thousand talkers whose tongues were all broken I saw guns and sharp swords in the hands of young children And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall The lyrics, like all poetry have latitude for interpretation, but if they don't make you feel something for the state of our world, then I question your humanity. The best art is timely AND timeless which is hard to pull off, but is emblematic of Dylan's best work. This image is based on a photo by Daniel Kramer, who shot Dylan regularly during his rapid mid-60s ascent to stardom and audience projection of Dylan as the voice of a generation… a label Dylan was quick to resist. Dylan rose to the moment but abhorred public expectations and pressures. I think this image captures both his self-possession and reticence. -Shepard A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall. 18 x 24 inches. Screen print on 80# cream Speckletone paper. Original Illustration based on a photograph by Daniel Kramer / AUGUST Image, LLC. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 500. Comes with a Digital Certificate of Authenticity provided by Verisart. $70.
Summary
A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall is a 2025 screen print, 18 x 24 inches, on 80# cream Speckletone paper, signed and numbered in a first edition of 500 published by Obey Giant. It is a portrait of Bob Dylan based on a photograph by Daniel Kramer / AUGUST Image, who shot Dylan during his mid-1960s rise to fame. Fairey, re-inspired by the biopic A Complete Unknown, frames Dylan as the people's poet and praises his protest and social-commentary songwriting, taking the print's title from one of Dylan's songs. He notes the image captures Dylan's self-possession and reticence toward being labeled a generational voice. Priced at $70.
Why It Matters
This print extends Fairey's deep engagement with music as a force that shapes ideas and culture, here focused on one of the twentieth century's most influential songwriters. Fairey's statement is unusually candid, admitting he is no obsessive Dylan completist while arguing that Dylan's best protest and social-commentary work is astoundingly powerful and emblematic of art that is both timely and timeless, a standard Fairey openly aspires to himself. The reference to the biopic A Complete Unknown ties the work to a specific cultural moment that re-invigorated Fairey's belief in art's capacity to influence culture, giving the edition a clear point of origin. Sourcing the image from Daniel Kramer's mid-1960s photography roots it in the documentary record of Dylan's rapid ascent and his resistance to being cast as the voice of a generation, a tension Fairey says the portrait captures. As a second Dylan portrait following one he made in 2010, it signals the subject's lasting importance to him. For music and portrait collectors, it is a strongly rendered, accessible tribute to a canonical artist.
Collector Perspective
This is a natural target for music collectors, especially Dylan and 1960s folk-rock enthusiasts, and for those who collect Fairey's musician portraits. The bold, photo-based portrait reads clearly on a wall and anchors a music-themed display, while the Dylan subject gives it crossover appeal beyond dedicated Fairey collectors. At $70 in an edition of 500, it is an accessible signed screen print with a recognizable cultural figure and a documented photographic source. It fits a music portrait grouping and pairs with Fairey's other musician and culture editions. The signature, numbering, photo credit to Daniel Kramer / AUGUST Image, and Verisart certificate support its provenance.
Historical Context
A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall continues Fairey's long line of music portraits and his conviction that protest music shapes culture. It follows an earlier Dylan portrait he made in 2010, marking a return to a figure he considers central to modern music. Released in 2025 in the wake of the Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, it reflects how contemporary cultural events feed his subject choices. Building the image from Daniel Kramer's mid-1960s photographs situates it in the well-documented period of Dylan's ascent and his discomfort with the generational-voice label. Within Fairey's arc, the print reinforces music and pop-cultural portraiture as enduring pillars alongside his political and environmental work.
FAQ
Who is depicted in this print?
It is a portrait of Bob Dylan. Fairey, a longtime Dylan fan, made the image after the biopic A Complete Unknown re-invigorated his admiration for Dylan and his belief that art can shape ideas and influence culture. The title comes from one of Dylan's own songs.
What photograph is the image based on?
The image is an original illustration based on a photograph by Daniel Kramer / AUGUST Image, LLC. Kramer shot Dylan regularly during his rapid mid-1960s ascent to stardom. Fairey says the portrait captures both Dylan's self-possession and his reticence toward public expectations.
What are the edition details?
A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall is a screen print measuring 18 x 24 inches on 80# cream Speckletone paper, signed by Shepard Fairey and numbered in an edition of 500. Published by Obey Giant in 2025, it includes a digital Certificate of Authenticity from Verisart and was priced at $70.
Is this Fairey's first Dylan portrait?
No. Fairey notes he made a portrait of Dylan in 2010 and thought that might be enough, but the biopic A Complete Unknown prompted this new image, reflecting Dylan's continued significance to him and to the evolution of modern music.
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.