Now on View: Portrait of Barack Obama by Shepard Fairey

            ©  Shepard Fairey/ObeyGiant.com

The portrait that came to symbolize the historic campaign of President-elect Barack Obama is now on display at the National Portrait Gallery. The piece, created by Los Angeles–based graphic designer and street artist Shepard Fairey, came to the museum through the generosity of Washington, D.C., art collectors Heather and Tony Podesta, in honor of Tony Podesta’s mother, the late Mary K. Podesta.  This large-scale mixed-media stenciled collage is on view in the “New Arrivals” exhibition, on the museum’s first floor. 

Fairey’s Barack Obama “Hope” poster became the iconic campaign image for the first African American president of the United States. Early in 2008, Fairey produced his first Obama portrait, with a stenciled face, visionary upward glance, and the caption “Progress.” In this second version, Fairey repeated the heroic pose and patriotic color scheme, substituting the slogan “Hope.”

The artist’s intention that the image be widely reproduced and “go viral” on the Internet exceeded his greatest expectations. The campaign sold 50,000 official posters; a San Francisco streetwear company produced T-shirts; grassroots organizations disseminated hundreds of thousands of stickers; and a free downloadable version generated countless repetitions. Although the reproductions rarely convey the elegant surface patterning seen in this original collage, they forged an unprecedented and powerful icon for Obama’s historic campaign.

Shepard Fairey’s work is represented by the Irvine Contemporary gallery in Washington, D.C.  His art is in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.  In 2006, Gingko Press published a monograph on the artist’s career, “Obey: Supply and Demand.” A retrospective of Fairey’s work will open on February 6 at the Boston Institute of Contemporary Art.

Listen to an interview with artist Shepard Fairey (13:49)

Photo by Warren Perry
The portrait was unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery on January 17; it is now on view on the museum's first floor.

Barack Obama/Shepard Fairey, 2008 / Hand-finished collage, stencil and acrylic on paper / Gift of the Heather and Tony Podesta Collection in honor of Mary K. Podesta / National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution / © Shepard Fairey/ObeyGiant.com

Comments

[Daniel Burtea]

I have enjoyed the portrait, and I have one too...abstract portrait of The New Star

[IMG]http://i633.photobucket.com/albums/uu55/danielburtea/101_0008.jpg[/IMG]

[Darren Milligan]

The portrait as shown at the Irvine Contemporary on October 31, 2008:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/brad-darren/2990352078

[Susanne Mei]

To watch a video of the installation of the Obama image and see an interview with Shepard Fairey visit www.smithsonianchannel.com

[alicia]

Shep's been very very busy.

http://thephoenix.com/BLOGS/phlog/archive/2009/02/03/shepard-fairey-bombs-boston-phoenix-boxes-at-the-ica.aspx

[DJOUKOUA AMARI JEAN DE DIEU]

I profite this ocasion for congrtulate the 44th president of USA and Waren Perry.
Good LUCK President

[Gadis Bugil]

Congratulations, I'm from Indonesia and very happy because Obama is the president

[Marie Wanata]

I am from Thailand, our people in Thailand are also love to see the new President Mr. Obama and hope that the economy will change better.

[Nancy]

I don't believe that a work of art that is the result of copyright infringement, by an artist who has been arrested for repeatedly damaging public property, belongs in our national museums--In light of these disturbing facts, perhaps Fairey's work should be placed in storage until you plan a display of "notorius" works...

[Pressure Washing Houston]

The proof will be in the pudding. And so far we only know that the pudding is chocolate! Everyone wants to make him the next Superhero....lets wait and see before we start sewing a new cape. He sounds a lot different when he stops talking about "hope" and he starts talking about reality!

Daniel Simmons

[Sally]

Ben Arnon conducted an interview with Shepard Fairey that approaches his famous Obama portrait from the perspective of Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point. I think it provides a very compelling back-story to his image of Obama. Here's a link to the story: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ben-arnon/how-the-obama-hope-poster_b_133874.html

[janna]

Obama is a symbol for hope, maybe he won't be a good president but the fact that we can get this far is amazing and shows hope for people of all types

[Selly Xiu]

Let us pray so Mr. Obama will have success. May God bless him

[Maria]

I love that, I wish I could go and see it!

[Alex]

This work is clearly not copyright infringement. If you look up the Fair Use Law, as well as the original photograph it is based on, Shepard Fairey wins the case on three out of the four principles of Fair Use. It will be a gross abuse of the legal system if somehow he loses the suit with the AP.

I saw it in person at the NPG and it is a brilliant, gorgeous work that helped our first black president win the election. It doesn't matter whether or not Obama is a great president, it is still a piece of history.

[Uranus]

I never believed that this will happen, in my life time, god bless America. Only in America. I now believe.

[abhe]

I have enjoyed the portrait

[Akbar]

Can I collect this Photo?

[Bambosi]

It's mean hope a change :)

[Joseph J. Pippet]

It's a shame a photo doesn't show us what's in a persons Heart.Love or Murder.

[Juegos Gratis]

Beautiful portrait!

[Norman]

After the first 100 days, I was convinced that Americans have the President who will lead us out of the great recession and enter the new area of american history.

[Promo]

I like it, I like Obama, I support it, looking future

[Jordan Marquis Williams]

I like this portrait

[Jb]

I dont like barack obama's ways

[chat sohbet]

thanks for this, its sooo much faster now