Going Going... Travel Tales from a Broad

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When we first arrived at the Warhol museum there was a line of fans waiting outside in the drizzling rain. In the window reflection across the street you could see what one often does see when Fairey has made his mark on a town. A black and white image, a stark face puncturing the gray of the day. The doors open and a bouncer quickly checks names off his list. In the entrance gallery amidst floor to ceiling Warhol portraits in their neon pink and electric yellow stands a man. A young dad playing with his daughter. It isn’t long before he is surrounded by cameras and an entourage.

Matt and I have traveled from New York to see this exhibition after attending the previous showing at the ICA in Boston. Attending a Fairey exhibit really gives an incredible sense of of taking part in something special. You look around and notice a 15 year old boy in skater attire and on the other side a woman who looks like she’d fit in as an Upper East Side Park Avenue dame. The spectrum of age, style and attitude is so widespread, but each of us is here because we love this art and the message it gives. Perhaps in this particular setting with the reminders of Warhol’s happenings, in a gallery hall with a DJ booth and bar, that one is reminded of art as a social event, satisfying every sence, the artist achieving rock star status. Fairey’s manifesto of “believe nothing, question everything” invites you to awaken your awareness of everything you see, questioning the messages of a consumer driven society. Ultimately, however, Fairey’s art breaks beyond museum walls and the true reward is coming across an “Giant” sticker on the back of a stopsign, peace fingers on a skate boarder’s tee, or a mural on the side of a building with that stark black and white face with the command “OBEY.”

TRAVEL TIPS

*Shepard Fairey “Supply and Demand” will be at the Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh until January 31, 2010. www.warhol.org

*For further information on Shepard Fairey, his art and OBEY clothing line visit www.obeygiant.com or www.obeyclothing.com

*For great eats in Pittsburgh try Primanti Brothers. This Pittsburgh chain serving sandwiches with “the works” is a must while in this town! www.primantibrothers.com for locations.

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