USAIN BOLT + PUMA
To help PUMA own social conversation during the brand-crowded World Track & Field Championships in Beijing, I helped immortalize iconic moments from their athletes as they were happening with real-time illustrations.
TIMING WAS EVERYTHING
As soon as the races ended I began illustrating key moments from every PUMA athlete. Each illustration was drawn in 30 minutes or less, to ensure that PUMA’s social team would be able to keep their posts feeling fresh while cutting through competing sponsors’ clutter.
EARLY PREP TO FINISHED ILLUSTRATION
Before the races began I did some studies to nail down an illustration style that I was confident I could execute quickly, and which would lend itself to dynamic, accurate portraits.
Colors would be refined later on, and the snapshots from the race would dictate composition, but I knew I should familiarize myself with Usain Bolt’s features to give myself the best chance for a quick turnaround.
The final illustration captured Usain Bolt’s gold-medal moments in a limited-edition screen printed poster, several of which which were signed by Bolt and given away to select Twitter followers.
BACKGROUND NOISE
When these races took place back in 2015, podcasting was a relatively new concept to me. Since the World Championships were hosted in Beijing I had to be set up and ready to start drawing as soon as results were in- which was roughly 3:00 AM, Eastern.
To keep myself awake and motivated, I began listening to the first season of the podcast SERIAL, which was wildly popular at the time. I ended up binging the entire first season while working on the final poster.