When football meets the arts

Blur, the Brighton Festival, David Byrne, Partick Thistle, Trafalgar Square, and Whitehawk Football Club.

You might think that's a very random list- and you'd be right- but there is a common theme. British artist, author, composer and sculptor David Shrigley has worked with the musicians, directed the festival, displayed sculpture in the square, and created a mascot for the Scottish football club- and now he's back in the round ball game once more, having designed a match poster for Whitehawk FC's match with Bognor Regis Town on New Years Day! So, how did the acclaimed Brighton-based creative genius get involved with the Hawks?

Head of Commercial at the Enclosed Ground, Kevin Miller, takes up the story:

'Having seen first hand whilst at Lewes how match posters can promote matches in a vibrant and fun way, I was keen to do the same for the Hawks; not to copy as such, but to draw on artists and creatives from within the city of Brighton & Hove to generate our own identity. In previous matches, for example, we’ve had fans design them- and for the Burgess Hill game we gave a graphic design student the chance to create something unique for us.

As for David, I knew of him- of course- as the curator of the Brighton Festival this year, and then I spotted a pic of him, resplendent in Hawks attire, at a home game- in a photo taken by another Hawks fans and renowned photographer, JJ Waller. I knew he was a local, but didn't know he was a fan!

So, I wrote to him. I explained what we were looking to achieve, and he was incredibly accommodating and delighted to help! The poster came in a couple of weeks ago, and we launched it on Tuesday. We've been running a little competition to win signed copies, and the response has been phenomenal! We will be selling A3 posters in the club shop on the day of the game for just £5:50, and for those that want to reserve one, they can simply e-mail me with contact details, and I’ll get back to them. I believe that David will be at the game too!

It’s just another example of how Whitehawk Football are looking to engage with its community, and I hope that it works and we get a bumper New Years Day crowd for the game!

The poster- as you can see- heads this article, and anyone who would like a copy reserved can contact Kevin by email here. And you can enter the competition by going to Twitter, here.

We look forward to the next football/art initiatives in this series, where Banksy is unmasked as a Worthing supporter after decorating Woodside Road under cover of darkness, and Damien Hirst displays a Burgess Hill Green Elephant in formaldehyde. Well, we thought this partnership was unlikely, so who can tell what will be next! Congratulations to Kevin and the Hawks for some marvellous creative thinking.