Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “Spring Forth”?
Artist Statement
Happy New Year everyone. This "Spring Forth" print is intended as a reminder that we always have an opportunity for a rebirth, a reset, a new spring to cultivate the things we believe in and most want to see in the world. Spring is a great metaphor, but I'm not waiting until spring to go forth with what I want to create, communicate, and build. There's an ideal future to push for, so I hope you won't wait either. Plant the seeds now! -Shepard Spring Forth. 24H x 18W 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
Spring Forth is a 2026 Shepard Fairey screen print published by Obey Giant, measuring 24 inches high by 18 inches wide on 80# cream Speckletone paper. Released January 8, 2026 in a signed, numbered edition of 550, it uses spring as a metaphor for renewal, reset, and rebirth. Fairey frames the image as a New Year's reminder that we always have an opportunity to cultivate the things we believe in and want to see in the world, urging viewers to plant seeds now rather than wait. The work pairs Fairey's signature graphic vocabulary with an optimistic, growth-oriented message and includes a digital Certificate of Authenticity from Verisart.
Why It Matters
Spring Forth distills a recurring strand of Fairey's recent output: hopeful, action-oriented messaging that asks viewers to invest in the future rather than wait passively for change. Where much of his 2024-2026 work confronts political crisis directly, this print offers a constructive counterweight, using the universal metaphor of spring and planting seeds to encourage personal agency and cultivation of one's ideals. That optimistic register makes it accessible to collectors who want Fairey's craftsmanship and message without overt confrontation. The edition of 550 is consistent with Fairey's standard Obey Giant release scale, and the signed, numbered format with Verisart authentication reflects his current production standards. As a New Year's release, it functions almost ceremonially within his catalog, a yearly note of intention. Its environmental and renewal-themed imagery connects it to a broader cluster of climate-conscious prints in Fairey's contemporary body of work, giving it both standalone appeal and a clear place within a thematic series collectors are actively assembling.
Collector Perspective
This print suits collectors drawn to Fairey's affirmative, motivational side rather than his most polemical work, and to those who like to acquire his New Year releases as a recurring tradition. At a 24-by-18-inch scale on cream Speckletone, it displays comfortably in homes and offices where an uplifting message is welcome. The edition of 550 is mid-sized for Fairey, broadly attainable for newer collectors while still carrying his signature and a Verisart certificate. It fits naturally alongside his environmental and renewal-themed prints, anchoring a sub-collection organized around themes of growth, optimism, and personal agency. Buyers valuing a coherent thematic grouping over scarcity will find it an easy, complementary addition.
Historical Context
Spring Forth sits in Fairey's contemporary period, the post-2020 stretch in which he has maintained a steady cadence of signed, numbered Obey Giant screen prints paired with charitable and civic messaging. Released on January 8, 2026, it reads as a New Year statement piece, using renewal imagery to set an intention for the year. Within his arc, it represents the optimistic, future-facing pole of his practice, balancing the more confrontational political prints he issued across the same window. Its emphasis on cultivating ideals and planting seeds echoes the environmental and stewardship concerns that have grown more prominent in his recent catalog, situating it among a connected group of climate- and renewal-oriented works rather than standing as an isolated image.
FAQ
What is the edition size of Spring Forth?
Spring Forth is a numbered edition of 550, signed by Shepard Fairey. It was published by Obey Giant in 2026 and includes a digital Certificate of Authenticity provided by Verisart, reflecting Fairey's standard production format for his Obey Giant screen print releases of this period.
What are the dimensions and materials?
The print measures 24 inches high by 18 inches wide. It is a screen print produced on 80# cream Speckletone paper, a textured stock Fairey frequently uses for his Obey Giant editions.
What is the message behind Spring Forth?
Fairey describes the print as a reminder that we always have an opportunity for a rebirth, reset, or new spring to cultivate the things we believe in. He frames it as a New Year encouragement to act now and plant the seeds for an ideal future rather than waiting.
When was it released?
Spring Forth was dated January 8, 2026, positioning it as a New Year release within Fairey's 2026 catalog of Obey Giant editions.
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.