Frank “Shepard Fairey” was born on February 15, 1970 in Charleston, South Carolina in the United States. In 1988, the artist graduated from Idyllwild Arts Academy in Palm Springs, California. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island in 1992.
His most famous art includes images of Andre the Giant, the Obey trademark, as well as the propaganda poster of Barack Obama. In 2008 Shepard Fairey used the Obama image to design Time Magazine’s Person of the Year cover. In 2011 Time Magazine commissioned the artist for a second Person of the Year cover. His latest cover designing was in April 2020 for Rolling Stone with a portrait of Greta Thunberg.
Shepard Fairey is also famous for his activist and humanitarian concerns and often creates and donates artwork in order to promote awareness and show support. After the 2015 Paris attacks, the artist paid a tribute to the victims with the creation of a poster depicting Marianne, the French national icon, surrounded by the French motto Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité. In June 2016, Shepard Fairey reproduced the image as a mural in Paris. Fairey then offered the poster to French President Emmanuel Macron who hung it in his office. The artist also founded in 2007 the Obey Awareness Program, operated by Obey Clothing, so as so increase his humanitarian efforts. This program allows Fairey to support handpicked causes he believes in by selling specially designed merchandise and donating 100% of the profits raised. In the early 2000s, Fairey began donating to organizations like Chiapas Relief Fund or Feeding America.
