Gauntlet Gallery
What is D*Face’s piece called “Painting Over The Cracks”
Summary
A letterpress-style exhibition print for D*Face's "Painting Over The Cracks" solo show, rendered in cream, black and earth-brown with bold distressed display type and a hand-drawn workman character literally brushing paint over a cracked brick wall. It marries D*Face's pop-vandal sensibility with vintage advertising typography, turning a gallery announcement into a stand-alone artwork about papering over decay.
Why It Matters
The print folds D*Face's central preoccupations into a single visual pun: the worker "painting over the cracks" is both a literal sign-painter and a metaphor for the cosmetic fixes culture applies to deeper structural rot — consumer gloss masking decay. By appropriating the look of mid-century letterpress show bills and trade advertising and defacing it with his grinning, skull-tinged character, D*Face continues the lineage of street art that hijacks commercial graphic language and turns it back on itself. As an artwork tied to one of his gallery shows, it also documents his transition from wall-bombing to the institutional gallery context he helped legitimize.
Collector Perspective
At an edition of 24, this is a genuinely small run — exhibition and show-related prints in this kind of tight quantity tend to surface infrequently on the secondary market, so opportunities to buy are sporadic rather than continuous. The typographic, text-forward composition is less universally recognized than D*Face's marquee motifs (the winged D*Dog, the comic-strip lovers, the grinning skulls), which keeps demand narrower and more dependent on dedicated D*Face collectors and completists than on casual buyers chasing a signature image. That said, the very low edition size, the direct tie to a named solo show, and the framed presentation give it real scarcity value; price discovery can be uneven precisely because so few examples trade.
Historical Context
Produced in 2022, the piece sits in D*Face's mature Contemporary-era output, well after his StolenSpace gallery co-founding and his shift into international gallery shows. The aesthetic deliberately quotes vintage letterpress poster and industrial-advertising typography — condensed wood-type display lettering, a constructed brick-wall ground and a cartoon tradesman — the visual vocabulary of 20th-century commercial print that street artists routinely raid and subvert. The "cracks" motif and the act of painting over them frame the work as commentary on consumerism and surface-level branding, themes consistent across his practice.
FAQ
What does this print depict?
It is an exhibition print for D*Face's solo show 'Painting Over The Cracks,' showing bold distressed display type with that title over a cracked brick-wall background, plus a hand-drawn workman character holding a paint can and brush, literally painting over the cracks. Show details (6th August, Corey Helford Gallery) appear at the bottom.
How large is the edition?
The edition size is 24, making it a very small and scarce run.
What medium is it?
It is a giclee print.
Is it signed and numbered?
D*Face limited-edition prints are typically hand-signed and numbered by the artist; this example shows a pencil inscription at lower left, though specific signature and numbering details should be confirmed against the actual piece and any accompanying documentation.
Who is D*Face?
D*Face is the British street artist Dean Stockton (b. 1978, London), a pop-art provocateur known for defacing comic-book, advertising and celebrity imagery with motifs like the winged-eyed D*Dog, grinning skulls and doomed comic-strip lovers. He co-founded the StolenSpace gallery.
Related Works
About the Artist
D*Face is the working name of Dean Stockton (b. 1978, London), a leading figure in British street art. He came up pasting stickers and posters across London in the early 2000s, then built a pop-fuelled visual language that defaces comic-book romance, advertising and celebrity iconography. Recurring motifs include his winged-eyed D*Dog, grinning skulls and doomed comic-strip lovers. His practice spans screenprints, hand-painted multiples, sculpture and large-scale murals worldwide, and he co-founded the StolenSpace gallery in London. His work satirises consumerism, power and our collective obsession with fame.
Collecting D*Face at Gauntlet Gallery
Where can I buy authentic D*Face prints?
Gauntlet Gallery offers an extensive, authenticated inventory of D*Face prints and contemporary editions, with new drops added regularly. Browse the current collection at gauntlet.gallery.
How does Gauntlet Gallery ensure authenticity?
Gauntlet Gallery is built on curation, authenticity and transparency — every work is vetted and its provenance, edition details and condition are disclosed up front.
Does Gauntlet Gallery add new D*Face prints?
Yes. New drops are released regularly across D*Face and other leading artists; see gauntlet.gallery for the latest inventory.