Shepard Fairey And Other Street Artists Go Mainstream For Barack Obama

October 3, 2008 · Filed Under Music News 

Jay-ZBy Joseph Patel

Whether you’re a Republican, Democrat or Independent, there’s no denying that one of the most ubiquitous images to emerge from the 2008 presidential campaign is the red, white and blue Barack Obama “Hope” poster. Created by one-time street artist Shepard Fairey, the poster features an austere portrait of Obama, manifest in a screen print that looks like one of those funny 3-D magazine pictures, with one of the primary slogans of his campaign written boldly underneath: hope.

For supporters of the Illinois senator, the poster has become a symbol of the potential of an Obama presidency as it adorns windows, billboards and the sides of buildings all around the country. For supporters of John McCain or Hillary Clinton, the portrait has sometimes earned derision for being emblematic of Obama’s “celebrity” status.

Fairey — who created and proliferated the image on streets and online, independent of the Obama campaign — organized a gallery show called Manifest Hope in Denver to coincide with the Democratic National Convention in August. The exhibit highlighted several of the artists who have come out with paintings, T-shirts, stickers, action figures, sneakers and more in support of Obama.

We interviewed Fairey and many of the other artists who were showing at Manifest Hope about what inspired their support for Obama and how they decided to express it artistically.

We probably should’ve rolled this out the week of the DNC but, you know, there were other, more pressing things happening in the country that week.

For me, the most amazing thing about the whole movement has been not only how Shepard Fairey’s singular idea has managed to propagate throughout all corners of the country, but how “rebel” artists — those who previously worked outside the bounds of popular art — have joined the bandwagon. David Choe, one of my favorite painters and illustrators, is one such example: a sort of loose cannon, often lewd and provocative visual artist who is onboard for a mainstream political candidate. None of the other major candidates for office this year has come close to having the same impact in the world of street art (although Complex magazine’s McCain/Palin-inspired mockups are pretty genius).

Full Story Via MTV.com

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