Portrait: Stephen Colbert

25 February, 2010 at 02:08 | Posted in Art, Portrait | Leave a comment
Tags: Contemporary Art, Fairey, National Portrait Gallery USA, Obama, Olympics, Portrait, Stephen Colbert, Television, The Colbert Report, Vancouver

Television host Stephen Colbert has commemorated his visit to the Vancouver Olympic Games by commissioning a portrait by American artist Shepard Fairey. Fairey received international recognition for his Hope poster depicting Barack Obama.

Colbert spent two days in Vancouver shooting The Colbert Report.  Prior to his arrival, the portait was made available for download on the show’s fan site. The image was posted all over Vancouver, and over 10,000 viewers turned up to the taping sessions.

Both Colbert and Fairey have a common link in the Smithsonian Institute’s National Portrait Gallery. Fairey’s Hope poster was acquired in January 2009; a portrait of Colbert was temporarily displayed for six weeks in the fall of 2009.

The portrait donated by Colbert to the Smithsonian

Fairey’s Hope poster

Fan art in the Fairey style

Colbert attended the Games not only as a television host, but as an Olympic ombudsman and sponsor of the men’s speed skating team. No wonder he has such dedicated fans; the man never does anything halfway! That, and he looks good astride an eagle.

stephwereley

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