Chances are, you’re turning to video calls more than ever for work meetings, happy hour with friends, and catching up with family. Change up your environment with a fun new adidas background, custom made by a selection of artists. Learn a bit about their process and download your favorite wallpapers that are guaranteed to be a conversation starter on your next call.
When Nora Vasconcellos isn’t skateboarding, she’s got her pen to paper creating art. “My dad is an illustrator, so growing up we were always creating stuff. We always had art stuff out in the house, and his studio was attached to our kitchen, so art was very accessible,” said Vasconcellos. She draws a lot of inspiration from storybooks, creating whimsical, colorful creations that often find their way onto her latest board. “I’m always buying fun-looking markers,” she said, referring to one of her favorite mediums, in addition to various kinds of paint. For her virtual background, she used some of her favorite colors — including her signature lavender hue — to create a “really loose style with some painted Shell Toes.” When it’s sitting behind someone, Vasconcellos said, “I just hope it brightens someone’s day, maybe gets them in a more creative headspace and feeling inspired. I think people who love a good sunset will like my background,” she added with a smile.
Mark Gonzales
If you love adidas skateboarding gear, then you’re likely familiar with Mark Gonzales’ signature “Shmoofoil,” which lives at the center of his adidas virtual background. Gonz rocked the skateboarding world with his free-spirited nature, testing boundaries in the late ‘80s by skating handrails, kickflipping stairs and cruising through oncoming traffic like a cat with unlimited lives. On the sidewalk he isn’t afraid to take a tumble, but on paper his art takes on a softer side, using pastels and friendly, smiling characters. “My moods dictate my process, which can be both a good and bad thing. I convey my emotions in my art,” said Gonzales. As someone who uses skateboarding as a creative outlet, he found it hard to get out there when the pandemic hit. With his virtual background, Gonz said he hopes it gives “joy and happiness. We all need a little bit of that right now.”
Nia Musiba
Nia Musiba grew up surrounded by art, so coming to Portland for art school was a natural next step. A digital artist who dabbles in drawing and painting, her creations begin in a digital space, with some becoming murals located around the city. Musiba created her virtual background to resemble a mural:
“What I’m drawn to about murals is that they kind of exist outside of me as the creator and they don’t really belong to one viewer — same as virtual backgrounds. I’m really excited that people I’ve never met and probably will never meet will be interacting with the art outside of my little world.”
Her creation splashes feminine figures with bright colors as they evoke the energy of sport. “Movement and representation are two things that already come up in my work a lot. I was inspired by this idea of all these bad-ass women in movement — whatever that means for them.” As her art sits behind someone, Musiba hopes to convey joy and confidence with this bright, playful background, “reinforcing the idea that there’s still movement in such a quiet time when we’re all stuck at home.”
A man of few words, Manzel Bowman prefers to let his art speak for itself. Born and raised in New York, Bowman uses a combination of drawing, painting, and mixed media to create his digital art pieces that each feel like a world of their own, often using images of a star-strewn night sky, gold accents, and powerful Black figures. Before creating his piece for adidas, Bowman had never even been on a virtual call, but the art came naturally; “I stuck with what I do best, really,” he said, referring to his ethereal works, “It was an idea in my head to start with the center-focused piece where the head sits, and go from there.”
A clear fan of symmetry, each of Bowman’s pieces have an intangible balance to them, creating a sense of peace for the onlooker. A laidback guy himself, Bowman says the animal that represents his art would be “a chill llama, grazing through the background, stopping to look at us to see what’s going on.”
Growing up in Wyoming, Nina Palomba turned to art as a way to express herself. “I had a pretty isolated upbringing,” said Palomba, “I was in the middle of nowhere, so in the mountains art became kind of like my BFF.” Inspired by 1940s style cartooning and illustration, Palomba’s art has a colorful, playful and comic-inspired aesthetic. During COVID when many people were cooped up, she left her home in LA to return to her roots in Wyoming, seeking out the same quiet nature that turned her toward art as a child.
Palomba’s virtual background displays a cartoon version of everything she misses about LA — the sun, the community, and the sport of skating by the ocean and having fun with friends; “My biggest inspiration for this was reminiscent of good times I had pre-COVID in California. The goal here was to create an image that’s very lighthearted and brings a sense of high energy that you would get from hanging out with good people.”
Sabrena Khadija has been drawing for as long as she can remember. “Being an illustrator wasn’t always my goal, but I’ve always loved drawing,” said Khadija, who is now primarily a digital artist based out of the D.C. area, creating art that brings in beautiful color and eye-catching shapes. When COVID shut everything down, so did her well of inspiration, but she has turned to self-care, friends, and the artist community on social media for fresh takes, and ultimately, to make her smile. “Lately I’ve been finding myself creating things that access a more bold, fun spirit — whether it’s the colors I’m using or the characters I’m creating,” explained Khadija, “I always want to communicate some kind of joy, happiness or elation.” A virtual background is a space she never thought to put her art in, but she’s excited. “I think the kind of person who would gravitate towards this is looking to bring a little bit of joy into their virtual meetings,” said Khadija.
Like many of us for the past year, Justin Peele has been on virtual call after virtual call, and noticed that where you are becomes a conversation starter. He used this as a jumping-off point to set his virtual background scene: “I wanted it to feel like you were in this cool, chill space, where there’s always cool people just out the door. This space is kind of what I wanted my room to feel like,” said Peele, who works from his self-proclaimed COVID-bunker, a.k.a his basement beneath Brooklyn. Along with a feeling of connection and community, Peele “wanted to create this scene of serenity in the face of COVID.” Peele has been drawing cartoons his whole life, and as an artist, writer and overall creative, loves the way the 3-Stripes brings the creative community together to each tell their story; “adidas has always felt like an athletic brand for artists. It feels like you put it on and you are whoever you want to be,” concluded Peele.
It’s hard to look at Wednesday Holmes’ vibrant virtual background and not feel joy — and that’s the goal. Based in London, the artist brings bright colors to their canvas as an escape when the clouds roll in. “I started creating art as a method of survival. I found that it helped my mental health so much. So I then decided to see if I could use it to affect other people’s mental health in a positive way,” said Wednesday. Their ideas start in a sketchbook filled with thoughts, doodles, and poems which form the basis of their creations. Throughout a year of isolation, many of us are seeking forms of happiness, and for Wednesday it’s always been through making art; “Living with mental illness has meant that I have been familiar with isolation. I use art to look at myself and to figure out what I need, and what others might need.” With this bright and cheery piece, Wednesday hopes to bring joy and a smile to your day, even if you’re having a tough time. “I’m fascinated by the different ways we can use art to embellish people’s lives. It feels wonderful that this artwork will be available for so many to enjoy during a difficult time.”
Inspired to Create?
Be whoever you want to be and create what moves you. If you take a selfie with your artist background or make your own art inspired by adidas, tag #createdwithadidas and show us your unique take.