Lately on campus, I've seen fellow members of our student body wearing Shepard Fairey's line, OBEY. One of the most recent experiences was walking in between class when a young man and who I presume was his significant other (female) walking on the sidewalk. Their conversation dealt with the upcoming weekend and whether or not she wanted to hang out with him and his friends. At this point, the young man looked over her and said "nah, you'll do what I tell you to do. See this shirt? See what it says? It says OBEY. Obey me, b***h!"
Appalled, I stopped for a minute to think about the direct disregard for Fairey and his actual ideals. Minutes later, I saw a different person walking with a similar sweatshirt on with the word OBEY written largely across the chest. Since it was someone I sort of knew, I approached him and asked him why he was wearing such a shirt. He replied almost laughing that he just thought the shirt was funny because it said OBEY.
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I started to wonder, does anyone really know what Fairey's line is about?
When Shepard Fairey created the OBEY Campaign, I doubt that he anticipated young men wearing it as a way to mistreat women and racial minorities. In theory, Fairey wanted to spark a counterculture movement "rooted in the Do It Yourself" ideals. Now 45, Fairey's OBEY Clothing company sells hundreds of products that are geared towards sparking a conversation among youth. Considered an activist, Fairey continues to push his messages with street art and regular artwork around the world.
So what is the Do It Yourself campaign? Well, according to their website, the campaign stems from the punk rock era and features various popular culture and political marketing (or sarcasm). In a sense, some of the purpose behind Fairey's clothing lines and artwork is a direct use of propaganda. By definition, according to Merriam-Webster, is the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person.
So what is Fairey attempting to injure? Well, from some of the bigger pieces by the artist, you'd assume it was the idea of government. In fact, you might go so far as to say he's a tad anti-establishment. Though, he has the right ideas.
Fairey believes that "the medium is the message," and he is able to facilitate that conversation through his clothing. While his intention was not to create the conversation I overheard, I do think it's meant to get people to start talking. And if I have any words of advice for my fellow friends who own some of his clothing, do some research.
It's not just a funny T-shirt.
