To reduce risk, the artist has kept his methods and materials simple, even as his work has grown more elaborate. Most of his recent pieces can be installed by a single person in under ten minutes. The piece War for Sale, a version of which is mounted on a brick wall on Roebling Street in Brooklyn, for example, is a large composition in the style of a psychedelic-era antiwar poster with Art Nouveau details. It has far more depth and color than any of the surrounding graffiti—and most of the advertising—on the street, but its construction follows basic principles of covert postering.

The work began as two three-by-six-foot sheets of paper with a black outline of the image photocopied onto them. In the studio, interns filled in the outline with paint. Then both sheets were stained to give the work a cream color and control somewhat the appearance of aging on the paper, which would soon be exposed to the elements. The piece went up without incident in June—a single assistant affixed both pieces to the wall in under six minutes—and (as of this writing) has yet to be taken down.

Despite the job's unusual hazards, assistants who install Fairey's street projects tend to have the same fundamental skills as their more traditional counterparts in the studio. Each time they find locations and install work on the street, they participate in his practice. To that end, understanding Fairey's process and ultimate vision are paramount—context is all important when it comes to street art—but unlike a painter's assistant, a street assistant must exercise sensitivity to the artist's intention while dodging the police.

"I work with people who have gone out with me before and understand how I like stuff done," Fairey said. "I need to know that they really get it."