World Champions Collection: England
Today we’re bringing our closer examination of the World Champions Collection to a close by looking at the final entry: England. First of all, let’s take another look at Abbey Clancy modelling the shirt…
The English crest was designed by acclaimed graffiti artist and typography specialist Ben Eine, who has also worked in creating customised clothing before. The World Champions Collection was still a bit of a departure for Ben though, so we sat down for a chat with him to discuss his work, the project and why he decided to get involved…
How would you describe your work as an artist?
‘Basically I started off doing graffiti about 20 years ago, when hip-hop, breakdancing and electro was first imported over from the States, and I couldn’t dance but I wanted to be part of that gang. I’ve been doing it pretty much ever since. About ten years ago, I stopped doing traditional graffiti, and moved more into the street art world, and the style of street art that I do is pretty much letter and word based, almost a modern-day interpretation of typography.’
What inspires your work?
‘It’s my weird fascination with typography and the letter form really. Graffiti for me is all about how letters change shape when you combine them with other letters, that’s my main inspiration. Outside of that, there’s been numerous artists who’ve inspired me, artists who worked in a certain way – Andy Warhol for example, and the way that he changed how art is produced, and his factory assembly line, the way he used screen printing.
How do you feel about people who say that graffiti isn’t art?
‘It’s weird, when I started graffiti as an art form or as a youth movement hadn’t existed before, it was just political or racist slogans, or the name of a band that you liked. When I started doing graffiti it was hated because of that and because it was tags on people’s property. What’s happened now is that you’ve got two generations of people who’ve grown up with graffiti and understand it, so it’s no longer this shocking youth movement that it once was. The street art movement has turned it into something that’s a lot more understandable and culturally acceptable.’
Has England inspired your work?
‘I think we’re lucky in England because artists are treated as some sort of pop star or mini-celebrity compared to lots of other countries around the world. We’ve got lots of art galleries and lots of events that happen around the country, so the general population understands art in a way that people in other countries aren’t. They’re aware of what artists are trying to do, and it’s fine to buy a piece of art and hang it up in your house. So from an artists point of view, it’s a great place to be.’
What made you want to get involved in this collaboration with Umbro?
‘I’m not a particularly massive football fan to be honest, but when the big tournaments come around, everyone gets bitten by it, and I thought this was a great project to get involved with. Also, Umbro have got a great history of supplying England, so they seemed like a good brand to get involved with.’
What do you think of the existing crest?
‘It’s good, it’s the England football team’s version of the Union Jack really.’
How did you approach the task of designing your own crest?
‘I wanted to do something that was a traditional crest, rather than something ultra-modern and sleek, but also slightly tweaked to bring it up to date and to include some of the things that have influenced me.’
What was it like to work on a smaller scale than usual?
‘It was good fun, a lot of what I do is larger than life, but I do spend a lot of time in my studio doodling and drawing, that’s something that I really enjoyed doing.’
How do you think England will do this summer?
‘I’m always optimistic, but realistic. I think they’ll do well, but I think they’d be lucky to get to the semi-finals.’
What role do you think a crest has for players and fans?
‘I think the England crest is a medal of honour. To represent your country in these big tournaments is an amazing achievement, you’ve got to be at the peak of your physical fitness, so to reach that place is undoubtedly going to be a highlight of your life. So to pull that shirt on, it’s got to be the proudest moment of your life, and the only thing that could match that would be winning the trophy and lifting it up while you’re wearing the shirt.’
