Comments on: Is Shepard Fairey A Plagiarist?

By: Septic One

Septic One — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 08:27:02 +0000

Shepard Fairey should be called out on stealing from minority artists and for twisting the message of other artists. I read articles that open my eyes to how horrible he is as a man. He does not allow artist to comment visually on his art but takes, takes, takes all he can from minority artists and photographers. If he thinks that fair use is creative freedom he should accept that artists will comment on his work visually and profit from it just as he does. NPR did not ask him about any of his contradictions and ICA did not either. He is a hypocrite and steals culture for his own profit and messages. He is a rightest selling a leftist message for his own fame and fortune. Support the ASL group in exposing this fraud. Please read and see what he does from the words of this man who has been critical of this artist,

http://www.myartspace.com/blog/2009/02/shepard-fairey-sues-associated-press.html

And the Supertouch article bashing Mr. Vallen is bogus. They only bash Mr. Vallen becauses Vallen is a true revolutionary artist and mentor of the streets. They do it because Mr. Fairey makes them money.

http://www.myartspace.com/blog/2009/02/jamie-oshea-obeys-shepard-fairey-by.html

By: Sham

Sham — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 07:23:24 +0000

Vallen's criticism was known long before it was mentioned in the Boston Globe and just before Fairey went mainstream with the Obama image. If you actually read the critique you would realize that the Obama image was not mentioned in the critique. The problem with Fairey is that he is a hypocrite. He slammed Baxter Orr in early 2008 with legal threats after Orr made a parody of the Obey Giant image. So where does he get off crying fair use now? Shepard Fairey has shown his true colors. I read the SuperTouch article and it shows how stupid his supporters are. No one is going to pay for that book just to make the connections that Fairey should have been able to make without it! If he is gong to support fair use he should accept that others are going to use his work and pay him homage in the same way he claims to pay homage to Rene Mederos and other minority artists he has stolen from without giving credit where credit is due!

By: s

Wed, 18 Feb 2009 05:36:19 +0000

The AP case is weak. This article is weak. Rumspring is right on.

By: KCinDC

KCinDC — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 16:38:31 +0000

People are listening to Vallen because many (though not all) of the examples he gives are damning, showing that Fairey appropriated others' images with essentially no changes, giving no credit to those who did the actual work. The AP case, on the other hand, seems a bit of a stretch, especially since the original photo would have been completely forgotten if Fairey hadn't chosen it.

By: Rumspring

Rumspring — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 15:25:40 +0000

Why is anyone listening to Vallen? What is motivating Vallen (15 minutes)? Why doesn't this post question the assertions of Vallen's rant?

Visit SuperTouch.com and have a look at the editorial from February 2, 2009 about appropriation if you want an enlightened and informed view of these accusations:
http://www.supertouchart.com/2009/02/02/editorial-the-medium-is-the-message-shepard-fairey-and-the-art-of-appropriation/

By: theRake

theRake — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 02:19:41 +0000

THE MESSAGE IS THE MEDIUM > > >

By: Disobey Giant

Disobey Giant — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 22:41:50 +0000

I like his work, but he had to realize that for this purpose he should obtain/purchase proper permission for the photo. I hope he can cut a deal with the photographer but not lose everything (a la The Rolling Stones and Verve).

Lifting the images to re-purpose them seems to be intrinsic to his art. Regardless of whether we appreciate the validity of his decisions, clearly he can recognize and produce produce competent (and popular) graphical compositions. I am envious of his success, but I don't feel the need to see him toppled. This was a pivotal gig and he blew it. It may not hurt his street cred, but he's not likely to get any evites to the White House.

By: Jim Treacher

Jim Treacher — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 21:32:14 +0000

"Shepard Fairey’s brilliance lies in his ability to take iconic images, flip the script, and make a whole new statement, giving the image entirely new meaning."

Yeah, taking a piece of socialist propaganda you found and slapping an "Obey" logo on it is really flipping the script. You must be a big fan of eBaum too.

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 16:18:31 +0000

iremember, are hip hop musicians plaigarists if they sample?

By: iremember

iremember — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 14:32:00 +0000

This guy Fairey has made a career out of lifting images that don't belong to him then passing them off as his own. He doesn't deserve any support as an artist. You people that believe he doesn't do this are gravely misinformed and need to do your homework before you embrace your poster boy.

By: Adam Zucker

Adam Zucker — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 06:59:25 +0000

I just posted an article relating to this very same topic in my blog. I go at this from an art historical perspective. http://urbancarnivore.blogspot.com/2009/02/do-you-steal.html check it out!

By: AED

AED — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 06:07:17 +0000

"15 minutes of fame"? Cherkis, where have you been for the last 20 years? Shepard Fairey is probably one of the most well known, and highly respected artists of last two decades. Respected it seems, with the exception of Mr. Vallen, whose own work is sadly lacking in the creativity that he purports to see missing in Shepard Fairey's work.

By: C. Kelly

C. Kelly — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 02:08:34 +0000

I don't think the AP has a real case. I think they are just trying to use their group power and $ to squeeze an individual. I hope he doesn't cave.

By: VNL.

VNL. — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 23:13:08 +0000

I don't understand what the big deal is. Is Vallen just hating because he didn't come up with this stuff himself? Or is he just trying to assert his Art History prowress? Shepard Fairey's brilliance lies in his ability to take iconic images, flip the script, and make a whole new statement, giving the image entirely new meaning. If anything, he's paying homage to the strength of the original imagery.