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July 2001, Hong Kong
By: Kit Chan
Shepard Fairey excels in that particular something that he does repeatedly day after day -producing the same pattern. colouring it with the same black and white and red and cut and paste it onto whatever spots he manages to locate.
The one thing that reader need to know about Shepard Fairey is that Obey Giant is not the name of the designer-it’s just a street art project that Fairey started some years ago.
And Obey Giant is not ready the name of any “character”. It is a slogan. and it literally means “please obey the giant”. Why obey? Who is the giant? The answer is there in the interview.
Shepard Fairey’s Obey Giant project is not a new thing. It has been ongoing for eleven years in places like the United States, England, Japan, Australia and Singpore. When Fairey was invited by a local unit to come to Hong Kong a month ago, he had caused a storm. For those who are faniliar with the name, as well as for Fairey himself, such an overwhelming reception was quit a surprise. The crowd’s passion could be a positive indicator of Fairey’s popularity. Yet the scene could be quite embarrassing if one relized that the “flock of sheep”actually had no idea about what kind of project Fairey has been doing and intentions behind. Yes, Fairey is a phenomenon. Like all those street artist that have eventually become known to the world: we have seen the emergence of Pop Art, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring and Basquiat in the past, and now we have Shepard Fairey. What counts, in additionhis superb illustrations, is his motivations and intentions.
