Will Patterson and the University of Oregon design school brought unity between athletics and art to Matthew Knight Arena for the 2022-23 Oregon men’s basketball season.
The idea for a poster series – started by Patterson – has allowed student artists like Izzy Shilakes, Bella Molyneux and others to share and express their artistic talents. These students create a poster unique to each home conference game over the season and are given a platform to share their work and display a similarity between basketball and art.
“The skills of our basketball players are artistic in a way,” Patterson said. “[These posters] are more of a mental art crossover.”
Patterson said he brought the idea for the poster series with him from the Portland Trailblazers – who he spent time with before being hired as the Student Information Director for the men’s basketball team last year.
“I was [with] the NBA for the last seven years before I came here,” Patterson said. “I was more tuned in to what they did for promotions. I thought it was cool. Last year I thought of it but it was too late to do it. But the more I sat with it, the more I thought it would be a good idea.”
The idea struck Oregon students as a tremendous opportunity.
“It was a great creative process,” artist Izzy Shilakes said. “It was fun to try and distill what I appreciate about the men’s basketball team and turn it into a poster.”
Shilakes – a junior at UO – created the first poster for the new series. Her poster for Oregon’s game against Washington State kicked off the initiative and caught the eye of students and Duck fans in attendance.
“It was great to have that recognition but also support the team in the way I could do it best,” Shilakes said.
Shilakes has been creating her entire life. Diagnosed with dyslexia as a young child, she relied on painting, drawing and colors to express herself. Now, she uses her talents to bring sports and art together.
Shilakes said she gains a lot of inspiration from her peers within the art school — camaraderie, she says, that is not unlike sports. Just as teammates learn from and push each other to get better, artists often do the same to bring out the best in each piece and each artist.
She wants her art to be relatable and approachable. Her basketball poster put an emphasis on the sun. Living in such a rainy climate, Oregonians long and yearn for the sun. Shilakes said she saw the tie between Oregonians strive for sunlight just as the Ducks strive for greatness.
Shilakes really leaned into art as a hobby in high school. On her Instagram page, @itiz.art, she shares her creations and drive to make art inclusive for all.
Patterson wanted to bring a tie between art and athletics to UO. He said every student has a gift and this is a fun and engaging way to bring students of all talents together.
In a recent win over Oregon State on New Year’s Eve, junior Bella Molyneux’s creative talents were on full display.
Her poster also featured a replacement for the basketball. This time, it was a disco ball. As 2022 wound down, Molyneux displayed the excitement of a rivalry game and holiday with her creative ideas.
Molyneux is a product design major, but she’s always possessed a love for art. When she signed up to design two posters, she “wanted to remember what it was like to do art for the fun of it.”
She grew up in Oregon, so her Beaver State roots run deep. She said she was thrilled to get the chance to create art for a team she grew up cheering for.
“I would hope that my poster taps in the love for Oregon,” she said.
Her poster for the OSU game – as each poster in the series is – was framed and presented to her as well as shown on the jumbotron and available virtually to fans that didn’t get a chance to receive a hard copy. She also boosts her work on her @neuxdesign Instagram page.
The connection between her art and the men’s basketball team wasn’t difficult for Molyneux to grasp.
“I think art and sports are both passions,” Molyneux said. “They both allow you to work out your energies, whether it’s creative or otherwise.”
This is the debut season of the poster series, but it’s a movement that Patterson believes to have legs and he hopes it sticks around.
“I hope [the series] continues for a while,” Patterson said. “The student section and those guys always seem excited and when we promote them; online people are pretty excited about that too.”
Regardless of future seasons, the poster series will continue for the remainder of this current season. Molyneux will create the poster for Oregon’s game against UCLA on Feb. 11, and Shilakes is responsible for designing the Feb. 9 game against USC.
