I have an apology to make, but first I’d like to give a little background. I met Elizabeth Daniels in Feb. 1996 while I was in NYC  putting up posters. I was standing on a window ledge on Mercer St. when a woman asked “are you the same person who puts those posters up in Providence”. Elizabeth explained that she went to Brown University in Providence and I  told her I had gone to RISD and still lived in Providence. We started conversing about art and hours flew by. Elizabeth also told me she was a photographer and I made a visit to her apartment to check out her photos when I returned to Providence. I found her photography to be beautiful and her gift of deep conversation to be profound… we have been friends ever since. Elizabeth has documented my artwork on the streets many times over the years. When I was putting together my monograph, “Supply And Demand”, she generously granted me permission to use some of her photos in the book. When I recently assembled my installation for LA MOCA I had a framed photograph of Elizabeth’s that I included in the installation along with all the posters, paintings, stencils, and a couple other photos taken by me and one other photographer. The entire installation was hung salon style, floor to ceiling, with almost no negative space. I did not put up description plaques for any of the pieces based on the volume of work and lack of space. I eventually heard from Elizabeth that she was hurt and offended that I did not make a credit plaque for her photograph. I did not intend to slight her in any way, but she said “one of my photos is in a major museum without credit”. That made me realize how fortunate I am to have been in several museum shows, something most artists can only dream of. My life is extremely hectic, but this incident reminded me that I can’t let my own overwhelming obligations serve as an excuse for not showing my appreciation of others. Regardless of the impracticality of labeling  my salon style installation, Elizabeth deserves credit for her contribution. Elizabeth I’m sorry for my oversight and I greatly appreciate your beautiful pictures of my work. This is Elizabeth’s photograph that is in the MOCA “Art In The Streets” show. Check out more of Elizabeth’s photography at www.elizabethdanielsphotography.com.
-Shepard Fairey