Honor the Treaties | The Film
Honor the Treaties is a documentary short directed by Eric Becker about photographer Aaron Huey’s work on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Charting his movement from journalist to advocate, the film details Aaron’s recent collaboration with artist Shepard Fairey. Ultimately, the film questions outsider’s abilities to tell accurate stories about poverty, exploitation and history. Aaron’s work on Pine Ridge appears as this month’s cover story in National Geographic magazine. Check it out HERE. Photography by Aaron Huey
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Black Book Gallery Show in Denver, CO
This is a painted mural the crew and I have almost completed in Denver at the CVA. Everyone has been super cool helping us out and I want to thank Blackbook Gallery and the CVA for organizing the wall. If you are in Denver come out to the art show at Blackbook on Fri. with Evan Hecox, Jim Houser, and me! Mural photo by Joseph Martinez
-Shepard Fairey
Black Book Gallery
555 Santa Fe Dr. Denver, Colorado 80204
303-941-2458
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Shepard Fairey x Russell Brand X
Shepard is making a guest appearance on Brand X tonight. Make sure you tune in and watch the entertainment ensue!
Show airs This Thursday Aug 2nd 11:00 PM E/P on FX.
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Cleon Peterson, Will Power and End of Days Prints
My friend and co-worker has just released 2 prints published by another friend John Goff. On top of being a great designer Cleon Peterson is an amazing artist and don’t let his dystopian imagery scare you. He’s reality a nice guy and I assume he’s getting his issues out through his art. Check it out and support my friend.
Thanks
– Shepard
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Shepard Fairey x Evan Hecox x Jim Houser
Black Book Gallery (Denver) Presents
FAIREY/HECOX/HOUSER
A group exhibition featuring amazing works by Shepard Fairey, Evan Hecox, and Jim Houser. Fairey will exhibit printed and edition works on wood and mix media collage. Fairey and Hecox will also be painting a murals while in Denver so stay tuned for photos of the work in progress.
OPENING RECEPTION:
Friday, August 3rd 6pm-11pm
Artists will be in attendance//Free to the public
Black Book Gallery
555 Santa Fe Dr.
Denver, Colorado 80204
theblackbookgallery.com
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Global Warmings Terrifying New Math
I passionately agree with the almost universal scientific consensus that climate change is not only real, but one of the gravest threats facing the planet. Even if I were less convinced about climate change, as a conscientious steward of the planet for future generations, I’d still want to err on the side of protecting the planet. The concessions to move in the right direction on carbon emissions are small compared to the consequences of going further in the wrong direction. A lot of people are in denial, selfish, or just ignorant about the science. The news tends to give equal weight to the voices that deny climate change even though they represent a very small minority. Common sense is all it takes to follow the money and recognize who stands to gain from denying climate change… fossil fuels companies. The media perpetuates the false equivalency between for and against opinions on climate change because it boosts ratings to indulge the fringe arguments. Rolling Stone has a very thorough article on global warming that I think anyone concerned about life on the planet should read. Thanks for caring. ~Shepard
Indie film w/David Yow
I ran into my friend Phil Donlan and Jesus Lizard singer and artist David Yow a few weeks ago and they told me about an independent film they are working on. The film is called High and Outside: A Baseball Noir, and also stars Geoffrey Lewis, who’s best known for a run of films with Clint Eastwood in the ‘70s, including High Plains Drifter. I met Phil when he was part of the film crew documenting the progress on my West Hollywood Library mural. He also came with our crew to Asbury park NJ to document the murals there and enjoy some spirits and good music. David Yow I’ve seen perform several times since ’91 as lead singer of Jesus Lizard and we have shown his art in our gallery as well. These guys have a Kickstarter campaign going to raise funds to complete their film. I appreciate the indie hustle and I want to support cool creative projects(and my friends), so I’d appreciate y’all taking a second to check out the Kickstarter campaign for High and Outside: A Baseball Noir.
-Shepard
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London Mural
While we were in Paris, I received the go-ahead on a huge wall in London that was proposed for a mural at the London Pleasure Gardens. The project was organized by Garfield Hackett of Mutate Britain and a bunch of the folks who work on the Glastonbury festival, so it was in great hands creatively, but since the Pleasure Gardens are adjacent to the Olympic site, the Mayor had to approve the mural imagery. I initially submitted a Rolls Royce on fire, which was rejected, and made it through the red tape with my second try of the Free Speech Megaphone. The wall is 120 feet high and the art itself is over 80. This mural is the highest one I have done and this location provided many challenges, some expected, some no so. First, customs held our materials for a couple days. Then, the surface of the building was very rough… which I found charming aesthetically, but difficult technically. We had to scrape old flaky paint off for an entire day before we started. Next, it was windy and rainy. One day the winds were so strong that a gust blew a billboard over onto a guy breaking his back and ribs. You don’t want to be on a lift 100 feet up trying to spray stencils in those conditions. After several stop and start days I was wondering if we’d be able to complete the mission. Finally the weather improved and we powered through several long days. We have worked under Spartan conditions before, but I have to give credit to my team of Nic Bowers, Dan Flores, and Z James for their hard work and tenacity under difficult conditions. In the end I’m very happy with the mural which can be seen from quite far away and will be the backdrop for a lot of cool stuff at the Pleasure Gardens. I should also mention that the building is where some scenes from one of my favorite movies, Kubrick’s “Full Metal Jacket” were shot. Check out this video about the mural with cameo by Norman Cook A.K.A. Fatboy Slim who dropped by to say hi. What a cool guy.
Shepard designs Rolling Stones 50th Anniversary logo
I’ve been a big fan of the Rolling Stones since my dad introduced me to “Satisfaction.” “Tattoo You” is one of the earliest albums I bought with my own money and I studied the album package obsessively… you may notice how its color scheme and iconic art could have inspired me? The Rolling Stones have had a lot of great art over the decades, but nothing can top their tongue logo, originally created by John Pashe in 1971. In my opinion, the Stones’ tongue logo is the most iconic, potent, and enduring logo in rock ‘n’ roll history. I think the logo not only captures Mick Jagger’s signature lips and tongue, but also the essence of rebellion and sexuality that is the allure of all rock ‘n’ roll at its finest.
I first worked with Mick Jagger and Dave Stewart on their project Superheavy. Mick and Dave were great to work with and I became at ease with our creative rapport despite their stature as musicians. However, when Mick Jagger reached out to me about designing a logo to mark the Rolling Stones’ 50th anniversary I was quite overwhelmed. Mick said he was open to any of my ideas . One of the first things I asked Mick was “don’t you think the tongue HAS to be included?”. He responded “yeah I guess it ought to be”. Case closed. I was very humbled and honored to be asked to work on the 50th logo so my objective was to service and showcase the Stones’ legacy rather than try to make my contribution dominant.
I worked on this project as a fan knowing that the Stones’ tongue was the focus and the starting point. With that in mind I set out to integrate the 50 in a creative and memorable way. I think the solution speaks for itself in celebrating the Stones’ trademark icon and historical anniversary. I’d like to thank the Rolling Stones for all their great music that has impacted my life and for allowing me to make a small contribution to their 50th anniversary. Cheers!
-Shepard Fairey
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SSI Picture Disc drops today
Some of you may remember my SSI poster collab with my friend John Goff. If so, this story may seem redundant, but note that the word “poster” has been replaced with the word “disc” because we worked on an SSI vinyl picture disc. It turned out very nicely as art and music. John is also publishing and releasing great screen prints by artists like Brin Levinson and a Cleon Peterson print drops soon.
I met John Goff in 1997 while I was living in San Diego. He liked my work and offered to help me screen print. I was broke so I could not afford a drying rack for the prints. John would lay the prints out to dry on the floor He would never accept money, but only asked for posters(which were virtually worthless at the time) in return for his efforts. John was easy to work with because once he discovered we both liked the Melvins, he started bringing great records over. I got all the Kraftwerk albums from John and realized that he was really into electronic music. Now, years later, John’s love of electronic music collides with me owing him a favor. John has an electronic music project with his brother Will called SSI (Sonic Solutions Incorporated) and asked me to design an SSI picture disc. You can check out and buy the disc here. John is also an audio whiz and has been helping me re-edit some songs to DJ with. If you’ve heard any of my DJ sets some of my work with John was in the mix.
-Shepard
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