OBEY
What is Obey Giant:
Obey Giant is a now universal street art campaign that has been declared an experiment in phenomenology by the project's creator Shepard Fairey. Using the iconic face of Andre the Giant as the center of every work of art, Obey focuses on increasing the amount of people aware of governmental injustice. THis image acts a s a form of indirect activism, in the fact that it requires the viewer to make their own assumptions of the graphics meaning. Some are more obvious then others in their content, but each has more meaning then what can be seen on the surface level. Through careful anaylsis each image can express not only changes in modern culture, but it can reveal truths about individual attitudes. These "cultural clues" are revealed by showing issues the world faces currently along with how people are handling it compared to years ago. By posting the trademark picture in all possible locations, people are forced to accept the image as part of their life. At this point the viewer seeks out the purpose of the image and this is where they learn about the serious implications of OBEY.
For more information visit http://obeygiant.com/about
What are these implications?:
Obey Giant seeks out to just get people aware of their surrounings, instead of walking around like the countless oblivious public. This newfounded conciousness not only gets people aware of whats around them but aware of the cultural changes our society is currently undergoing. These changes are not only evident in everyday social interaction, but on the walls of our streets in the form of graffiti. By looking at the world with a new perspective the world can be better understood and interpreted, which makes one more concious of how to style individual arguements when trying to get one's voice heard on a larger scale. While voicing out one'sopinion used to be the prefered mode of activism, now it may be time for a change, this is where street art has come in. Not just street art though, but indirect anonymous forms of activism which force the viewer to think and interpret images for individual interpretations. Again this is where the obey image comes into play. Since people are now more aware of their environments, they can more easily interpret things as activism and see the true meaning behind things which may have been called "vandalism" or "senseless" at one point.
What is beign Protested?:
"The FIRST AIM OF PHENOMENOLOGY is to reawaken a sense of wonder about one’s environment. The OBEY sticker attempts to stimulate curiosity and bring people to question both the sticker and their relationship with their surroundings. Because people are not used to seeing advertisements or propaganda for which the
product or motive is not obvious, frequent and novel encounters with the sticker provoke thought and possible frustration, nevertheless revitalizing the viewer’s
perception and attention to detail. The sticker has no meaning but exists only to cause people to react, to contemplate and search for meaning in the sticker.
Because OBEY has no actual meaning, the various reactions and interpretations of those who view it reflect their personality and the nature of their
sensibilities."
-Shepard Fairey 1990
Obey Giant seeks out to just get people aware of their surrounings, instead of walking around like the countless oblivious public. This newfounded conciousness not only gets people aware of whats around them but aware of the cultural changes our society is currently undergoing. These changes are not only evident in everyday social interaction, but on the walls of our streets in the form of graffiti. By looking at the world with a new perspective the world can be better understood and interpreted, which makes one more concious of how to style individual arguements when trying to get one's voice heard on a larger scale. While voicing out one'sopinion used to be the prefered mode of activism, now it may be time for a change, this is where street art has come in. Not just street art though, but indirect anonymous forms of activism which force the viewer to think and interpret images for individual interpretations. Again this is where the obey image comes into play. Since people are now more aware of their environments, they can more easily interpret things as activism and see the true meaning behind things which may have been called "vandalism" or "senseless" at one point.
What is beign Protested?:
"The FIRST AIM OF PHENOMENOLOGY is to reawaken a sense of wonder about one’s environment. The OBEY sticker attempts to stimulate curiosity and bring people to question both the sticker and their relationship with their surroundings. Because people are not used to seeing advertisements or propaganda for which the
product or motive is not obvious, frequent and novel encounters with the sticker provoke thought and possible frustration, nevertheless revitalizing the viewer’s
perception and attention to detail. The sticker has no meaning but exists only to cause people to react, to contemplate and search for meaning in the sticker.
Because OBEY has no actual meaning, the various reactions and interpretations of those who view it reflect their personality and the nature of their
sensibilities."
-Shepard Fairey 1990