Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Fractured Harmony”?
Artist Statement
This Fractured Harmony print features a mandala which is a symbol of wholeness and harmony. Both wholeness and harmony require unity of effort and respect for the health of the collective... so where do things stand when we are selfish and divided? In this image a female protagonist peers at the viewer from behind the torn mandala suggesting one individual's sadness that respect for each other and the planet that sustains all living things remains elusive. I believe that freedom and self-determination can symbiotically co-exist with respect for the planet and collective well-being. I think we've been tricked into a false binary that I refuse to buy. -Shepard PRINT DETAILS Fractured Harmony. 18 x 24 inches. Screen print on 80# cream Speckletone paper. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 550. Comes with a Digital Certificate of Authenticity provided by Verisart. $60
Summary
Fractured Harmony is a 2025 screen print, 18 x 24 inches, on 80# cream Speckletone paper, signed and numbered in a first edition of 550 published by Obey Giant. The image features a mandala, a symbol of wholeness and harmony, that has been torn, with a female protagonist peering at the viewer from behind it. Fairey frames the torn mandala as one individual's sadness that mutual respect, and respect for the planet that sustains all living things, remains elusive amid selfishness and division. He argues that freedom and self-determination can coexist with respect for the planet and collective well-being, rejecting what he calls a false binary. Priced at $60.
Why It Matters
Fractured Harmony turns Fairey's mandala motif into a pointed social commentary: the symbol of wholeness is literally torn, and a solitary female figure regards the viewer with sadness over a society too divided and selfish to sustain harmony. The piece crystallizes a recurring argument in his recent work, that personal freedom and collective responsibility for one another and the planet are not opposites but can symbiotically coexist, and that the binary pitting them against each other is a manipulation he refuses to accept. That explicit rejection of a false binary gives the print a clear political and ethical thesis while keeping its imagery symbolic rather than partisan. The torn mandala connects it formally to his Chaos Mandala works of the same year, positioning it within a 2025 cluster of mandala-based meditations on order and disorder. The central female protagonist adds an emotional, human anchor to the geometric symbol. For collectors, it offers a visually striking, conceptually layered image at an accessible $60 price and an edition of 550, blending decorative appeal with a substantive message about unity, respect, and the environment.
Collector Perspective
This appeals to collectors who value Fairey's mandala compositions and his pieces that pair a human figure with symbolic geometry. The torn-mandala-with-protagonist design is visually arresting and emotionally resonant, making a strong focal point that works in both contemplative and statement-oriented interiors. At $60 in an edition of 550, it is an accessible signed screen print, and it fits naturally alongside the same year's Chaos Mandala releases and related fractured-themed works for set or thematic collecting. It pairs with his peace mandala and environmental editions. The signature, numbering, and Verisart certificate confirm it as an official Obey Giant release.
Historical Context
Fractured Harmony belongs to Fairey's 2025 mandala-focused output, sharing its torn-symbol imagery and themes of harmony and division with his Chaos Mandala prints from the same period. Published by Obey Giant, it reflects the way he uses the mandala as a flexible vehicle for both meditative and socially critical content. The work's argument against a false binary between individual freedom and collective and ecological responsibility situates it within the politically engaged strand of his contemporary practice, where symbolic imagery carries explicit ethical messaging. Pairing a single human protagonist with the damaged mandala continues his long habit of grounding abstract symbols in a relatable human presence, extending themes that run through his recent environmental and justice-oriented editions.
FAQ
What does the torn mandala in Fractured Harmony represent?
The mandala is a symbol of wholeness and harmony, and Fairey shows it torn to suggest that respect for one another and for the planet remains elusive when we are selfish and divided. A female protagonist peers from behind it, conveying one individual's sadness about that division.
What message does Fairey convey with this print?
Fairey states that freedom and self-determination can symbiotically coexist with respect for the planet and collective well-being. He says we have been tricked into a false binary between the two, a framing he refuses to accept.
What are the edition details?
Fractured Harmony is a screen print measuring 18 x 24 inches on 80# cream Speckletone paper, signed by Shepard Fairey and numbered in an edition of 550. Published by Obey Giant in 2025, it includes a digital Certificate of Authenticity from Verisart and was priced at $60.
How does it relate to Fairey's other 2025 mandala prints?
It shares its torn-mandala imagery and themes of harmony and division with Fairey's 2025 Chaos Mandala releases, placing it within a cluster of mandala-based works from that year that explore the tension between order and disorder.
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.