Shepard Fairey, the “street artist” who designed those iconic red and blue Obama posters during the campaign, is back with another portrait of Mr. Obama for the August 20th issue of Rolling Stone.

As the New York Daily News reports, “the portrait [pictured here] depicts Obama with a brow knit in determination, surrounded by a halo of stars. ‘Will he take bold action or compromise too easily?’ asks a headline enshrining the President’s head.”

But Fairey denies the halo effect: “Rather, the picture he worked from showed Obama standing in front of the presidential seal, he said. ‘It’s one thing to be running for president and it’s another to be President and I think this new illustration that I did hopefully captures the complexity and the weight of his new role,’ Fairey said.”

I agree with the artist. Perhaps I’m hopelessly naive, but I didn’t see a halo when I looked at the cover. I saw a president profiled in front of a presidential-style seal.

What struck me more was the slight pursing of the president’s lips, which reminded me of Jimmy Carter (certainly a comparison almost no one is hoping for).

And then there’s the cover text teasing “A Roundtable” with David Gergen, Paul Krugman, and Michael Moore discussing “Obama So Far.”

Maybe that’s where the halo comes in.