Shepard Fairey
Supply and Demand
Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), Boston
February — August 2009
Shepard Fairey: Supply and Demand a 20-year survey of the artist’s work, was organized by the ICA Boston. It was the first exhibition of Fairey’s work in a museum. The exhibition ranged from his beginnings as a student at the Rhode Island School of Design where he placed his first sticker featuring a drawing of the wrestler Andre the Giant, to one of the central images of the 2008 presidential election, the portrait of Barrack Obama titled Hope. The exhibition featured 20 years of work in a variety of media used by the artist including stickers, posters, prints, billboards, canvasses, skateboards, outdoor and indoor murals. Many people have come across his work unaware that they are looking at art. This exhibition sought to create awareness of Shepard’s extensive body of work, reveal the origins, as well as explore the themes and issues that inspire him. The exhibition took place inside the museum as well as in public space on walls and billboards across the city of Boston. Shepard’s work is intended to be provocative. He wants the public to question the hierarchies of power that surround us. In questioning our place in society, the artist attempts to raise awareness, empowering us to follow his lead and act against the excesses of capitalism and the numbing effects of democracy and instant gratification.
This was a rollercoaster of a show. On top of a massive exhibition inside the ICA, Shepard and his crew covered Boston with wheat pasted images of his work. There were stickers everywhere, even on the copier in the ICA offices. The opening week climaxed with Shepard’s arrest, which drew even more attention to the show. The show broke attendance records. It seemed that everyone I spoke to went to see it, (except the young woman who cut my hair at the time). As much positive energy and excitement that surrounded Shepard and the exhibition there was also contempt. This was the first solo exhibition of a street artist in a major museum. At the time many people considered street art and graffiti as a form of vandalism. Many questioned why this work was being shown in a museum. Within a relatively short time the negative attitudes would change.
Guest Curator: Pedro Alonzo
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Photo credits: Geoff Hargadon, John Kennard