Top 38 Shepard Fairey Quotes
#1. As a street artist, I'm used to sharing my stuff with the public. It's a communal experience. I've learned not to be so precious, but rather to enjoy the process.
Shepard Fairey
#2. I think the Internet has definitely made it easier for people to have stuff seen, but it's also encouraged a level of ADD, where you see so much that if it doesn't make an impact on you immediately, you don't look at it.
Shepard Fairey
#3. If you're creating something that has some sort of cultural currency - if the idea is getting out there - then that will probably yield money in some form, whether it's through selling art or selling books or being asked to give a lecture.
Shepard Fairey
#4. The sticker has no meaning but exists only to cause people to react, to contemplate and search for meaning in the sticker,
Shepard Fairey
#6. Most campaigns rely on photographs because the moment you do something that is a graphic interpretation where any artistic license has been taken, I think a lot of people are scared that it's going to be perceived as propaganda.
Shepard Fairey
#7. I think the biggest thing that people fear when it comes to art becoming a business is those authentic, pure aspirations of art being compromised.
Shepard Fairey
#8. I've never had an original thought in my lifeand there's tons of people on the internet happy to tell me just that.
Shepard Fairey
#9. I think "punk" should really be defined as paving your own way creatively and by defying any sort of orthodoxy or commercial pressure.
Shepard Fairey
#10. There's good and bad in every arena. It's funny, some people, the reason they're in the underground is because they're lazy and don't make things happen for themselves.
Shepard Fairey
#11. I don't have this obsessive need to do street art all the time because it's already opened doors for me.
Shepard Fairey
#12. Just because you've reached a certain level of success, that doesn't mean you've become corrupted by the system.
Shepard Fairey
#13. The Internet hasn't had a chance to really get to where people look at it with the proper level of scrutiny. There's so much bullshit on the Internet. It doesn't get filtered out because it's such a new medium.
Shepard Fairey
#14. For me, there has always been a disconnect with the sort of elitist structure of the high-art world - and my distaste for that is at odds with my feeling that art should aspire to do great things.
Shepard Fairey
#15. The way I make art - the way a lot of people make art - is as an extension of language and communication, where references are incredibly important.
Shepard Fairey
#16. The Internet wasn't even an option for me, so one of the reasons I was so motivated to do street art was because there was no other outlet. Maybe if the Internet had been around then, I would have tried to do stuff that went viral and was clever and got me a lot of hits.
Shepard Fairey
#17. When I think about how I want to reach an audience, I just wanted to make pieces that were inspired by something that gave me so much pleasure.
Shepard Fairey
#18. Propaganda has a negative connotation, which it partially deserves, but I think there is some propaganda that is very positive. I feel that if you can do something that gets people's attention, then maybe they'll go and find out more about the person.
Shepard Fairey
#19. If the idea that my safety can only be enhanced by putting other people's privacy and safety in danger, then I don't want to be more safe.
Shepard Fairey
#20. I admire Ai Weiwei for his art and his activism. His art is beautiful in form, and in function embodies the principles of populism and social consciousness I aspire to in my own practice.
Shepard Fairey
#21. I love the classic trucker jacket as an icon of rock 'n' roll and rebellion.
Shepard Fairey
#22. I wear some of my stuff, but usually the less in-your-face designs. I get a little self conscious, there is a fine line between pride and ego.
Shepard Fairey
#23. The world has lost a great musician who will always be an inspiration to me and those at OBEY GIANT.
Shepard Fairey
#24. A lot of people thought I got famous as a studio artist, then decided to cash in on it. But it actually was just a matter of survival for many years, and I felt it was really important for me to be able to say whatever I wanted with my street art and fine art.
Shepard Fairey
#25. I've never really considered myself just a street artist. I consider myself a populist.
Shepard Fairey
#26. People like to talk shit, but it's usually to justify their own apathy.
Shepard Fairey
#27. The problem with copyright enforcement is that when the parameters aren't incredibly well defined, it means big corporations, who have deeper pockets and better lawyers, can bully people.
Shepard Fairey
#28. If being original means having to throw paint in front of a jet turbine to hit a canvas 50 ft away then lets not be original.
Shepard Fairey
#29. I said, ok, I'll pay the licensing fee it. And [the AP] said, no, we want to claim damages. I said damages? Because of my poster the Mannie Garcia picture is now worth more than it ever would have been.
Shepard Fairey
#30. I think the freedom to express one's views is more important than intellectual property.
Shepard Fairey
#31. When you walk down the street and see something in a crazy spot, there's something powerful about that. The street will always be an important part of getting art out there for me.
Shepard Fairey
#32. MY INSPIRATION FOR THIS LIMITED EDITION DESIGN WAS BASED ON THE LEGACY OF HENNESSY AS A BRAND. TO ME, HENNESSY HAS ALWAYS BEEN ABOUT QUALITY, AUTHENTICITY, TRADITION, AND ELEGANCE.
Shepard Fairey
#33. Public art is ephemeral by nature. Google 's new project not only catalogs an artist's work but archives it and allows people to see the art long after it has disappeared.
Shepard Fairey
#34. I'm mischievous. The idea of taking risks and having real-world consequences energizes me.
Shepard Fairey
#35. I want to be proud of this country [the USA], but when aspects of our policy don't align with my ethics, I want to protest them and try to change them. Being complicit because it's the home team is nationalism, not patriotism.
Shepard Fairey
#36. Creating is about sharing ideas, sharing aesthetics, sharing what you believe in with other people.
Shepard Fairey
#37. Why is non-commercial public expression considered criminal?
Shepard Fairey
#38. Art shows and the institutions end up being the couriers for culture for the next generation and are an important component as well. It may seem ironic from one perspective, but I think if you look at my overall strategy, it's actually not out of step.
Shepard Fairey
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