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Artist Israel Solomon made images of swimmers wearing sleek caps and goggles for customized auto-racing helmets to be presented to newly minted Olympians in Indianapolis.
Solomon, one of 13 Indiana artists who created designs for the top performers at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, said his work is a tribute to the swimmers competing at Lucas Oil Stadium.
“I know it takes a lot of athleticism to be at that high level,” Solomon said. “That’s not an easy sport. There’s a lot of training involved and a lot of technique. I admire that. To me, athletics can be parallel to art. You have to have that same drive and that consistency to have success in the world of art.”
To commemorate the trials that conclude Sunday, Indiana Sports Corp. enlisted Amiah Mims to oversee the project that serves as an intersection of visual art, swimming and the city’s stature as home of the Indianapolis 500.
Mims is a former Indianapolis Motor Speedway graphic designer who now runs creative services firm Works by Mimsy LLC.
“[The helmets are] something that stands out and something that reminds swimmers of the time they had here,” Mims said.
On display at the Toyota Aqua Zone inside the Indiana Convention Center, the helmets feature designs by Solomon, Mims and 11 other artists:
- Tasha Beckwith
- Jingo de la Rosa
- Byron Elliott
- Fitz
- Maria Iqba
- Shaunt’e Lewis
- Omar Rashan
- Lucie Rice
- Aaron Scamihorn
- Shamira Wilson
- Koda Witsken
Each artist contributed two designs for helmets, and each helmet was duplicated to add up to 52 helmets—one for every swimmer named to the Olympic team.
Mims previously organized exhibitions of art-adorned racing helmets for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum and the track’s annual Rev party that benefits the Indiana University Health Foundation.
Carol Howard, Rev’s executive director, helped to connect Mims with Indiana Sports Corp.
In contrast to the IMS museum and Rev helmets, which featured paint and physical decorations, the swimming-themed helmets showcase decals of digital art.
“The original plan was to have the artwork added directly to the helmets, but there simply was not enough time for that to happen,” Mims said.
The placement of decals resulted in consistency across the white helmets, while also allowing self-expression by each artist.
Imagery on the helmets ranges from water bubbles to the skyline of Paris, site of this summer’s Olympic Games.
After creating a template for the racing helmet’s rounded surface, Mims called on her fellow artists to use digital art application Procreate when executing their designs.
The artists submitted digital files, which were printed as decals and installed by Indianapolis company Sport Graphics.
Solomon, artist in residence for the upcoming “Promised Land as Proving Ground” exhibition at Conner Prairie, said it wasn’t a problem to work with the unconventional canvas of a racing helmet.
“I basically created a larger piece and then put the template on top of that larger piece to find the best angle,” said Solomon, who grew up in Kokomo.
Pike High School alum Mims said one of her designs, based on the blue lotus water lily, represents the resilience and triumph of the Olympic swimmers.
“I chose a blue lotus flower because it’s an aquatic flower that thrives in a water environment,” Mims said.
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