Major League Soccer side Toronto FC is partnering with artists from around the Greater Toronto Area to turn their kits into canvases showcasing the diversity of the city they call home.
Toronto FC launched their Starting XI program earlier this month, giving 11 artists from around the city the chance to use the white half of the club’s secondary “Community Kit” as a canvas to celebrate their own communities.
“From an Eagle Feather to the 6ix to pirate tattoos, the city skyline to flowers in bloom along the fence of the neighbourhood practice field, the 11 designs bring to life the vibrancy and multiplicity of Toronto.”
— TorontoFC.ca
Four Toronto FC players — Lorenzo Insigne, Federico Bernardeschi, Ayo Akinola and Lukas MacNaughton (later traded to Nashville SC) — attended a workshop at the Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) LaunchPad youth center in Toronto on Thursday, April 20, where they and local youth had the chance to work with the Starting XI program artists to create their own jerseys.
The kits created by the artists, along with those created by players with artists’ help, will be auctioned off later this summer to help raise money for the MLSE Foundation.
Akinola, a forward for TFC, is working with artist Roza Nozari to bring his kit vision to life. His design will mix elements of his heritage with “the most important thing in the world and a multilayered element that both catches the eye and then reveals itself on closer inspection.”
“They were picking our brains; we were explaining to them who we are and what we represent,” Akinola said of his conversations with the artists. “I was telling Roza I was born in the U.S., raised in Canada, but my background is Nigerian, so I want to incorporate those three countries because they represent who I am.”
“Family-based as well – my mom, my brother, and my dad,” he continued. “I want to incorporate that into it, but also I want it to be in a way where from afar you can see that it looks big, but once you get closer to it, you can start to see little details of what it really represents. When you get closer to the jersey, you can start to see little pieces, like ‘Oh snap! There’s actually details in it.’”
TFC supporters will also get their chance to make their mark. The club is hosting workshops at their next three home matches where fans can customize their own Community Kits.
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