Which American artist created the 'Obey' sticker campaign in 1989?

Shepard Fairey created the sticker campaign that became known worldwide as OBEY.

The story began in 1989, when Fairey was a student at the Rhode Island School of Design. He made stickers featuring wrestler André the Giant and the phrase “Andre the Giant Has a Posse,” initially as a playful experiment shared with friends. The image spread through stickers, posters, and stencils placed in public spaces.

A common mix-up is the date and wording: the original 1989 campaign used the André the Giant image, while the simplified “OBEY” version emerged later, in 1996. Fairey changed the design partly to give it a more Orwellian, authoritarian tone, inspired by the film They Live.

The campaign’s deliberately mysterious appearance encouraged people to question advertising, public space, and their own reactions to visual symbols. Fairey later developed the image into the OBEY clothing and design brand.