Contact:
B.Angelo
HoopArt.com
888-560-1850
info@hoopart.com
http://www.hoopart.com
August 19, 2005 (Press Release) --
CHICAGO, Aug. 19, 2005 -- From the inner city to the white sand beaches of the Philippines, B.Angelo played hoops. He played as a kid, he played as a Marine, and later, when he was no longer traveling around the world playing basketball, he drove around looking at busted-up backboards and thinking about how his own passion for the game was born back on Chicago’s South Side.
And, eventually, he started taking pictures of the nets and the backboards, the makeshift courts and the players whose faces showed their love of the game. B.Angelo called his work HoopArt (http://www.hoopart.com), and his photos were vivid reminders of how it all begins.
“Growing up in the inner city as I did, every aspect of basketball was always fascinating to me,” explained B.Angelo. “Later, when I was done playing competitively, I realized I had an artistic vision in me and it was centered on basketball.”
So B.Angelo, who had learned photography when he was assigned the role of unit photographer in the Marines, picked up his camera. As part of the All-Marine basketball team, he had played everywhere and knew there was no shortage of subjects for his chosen medium.
He began traveling around cities taking photos. Scenes would capture his attention, and for each one, he could visualize a title: “Anger” was torched, the hoop ripped out of the backboard. “Paradise” was a plywood square on a palm tree, its hoop the rim of a plastic bucket. “Pay’n Dues” was an iron bar fastened to the side of a building, no backboard, and the net long torn away from the rim.
Through each of B.Angelo’s pieces runs a common thread: the love of the game. “In my travels, I gained perspective on basketball around the world and found it fascinating,” said B.Angelo. “There are guys playing basketball in flip-flops, with a backboard nailed to a palm tree. It’s amazing what people are willing to do to play this game.”
B.Angelo’s work spoke to a lot of people. His first exhibit, a show at Arizona State University, was wildly popular. His images were different, people told him. They captured something the art world hadn’t seen before. And his limited-edition Giclee prints, stretched and mounted on canvas, began to sell.
“HoopArt was the release for me, to keep me competitive and loving the game I’ve always loved,” B.Angelo said. “I’m combining my passion for basketball with my love of photography to ignite that fire for the game in others. I can’t think of a more rewarding career.”
HoopArt.com includes a gift shop, where enthusiasts can purchase his prints on items like coffee mugs, t-shirts, posters and messenger bags. It is a route not taken by many fine artists, but B.Angelo is adamant that the fine art of basketball, at least, should be accessible to everyone.
And, eventually, he started taking pictures of the nets and the backboards, the makeshift courts and the players whose faces showed their love of the game. B.Angelo called his work HoopArt (http://www.hoopart.com), and his photos were vivid reminders of how it all begins.
“Growing up in the inner city as I did, every aspect of basketball was always fascinating to me,” explained B.Angelo. “Later, when I was done playing competitively, I realized I had an artistic vision in me and it was centered on basketball.”
So B.Angelo, who had learned photography when he was assigned the role of unit photographer in the Marines, picked up his camera. As part of the All-Marine basketball team, he had played everywhere and knew there was no shortage of subjects for his chosen medium.
He began traveling around cities taking photos. Scenes would capture his attention, and for each one, he could visualize a title: “Anger” was torched, the hoop ripped out of the backboard. “Paradise” was a plywood square on a palm tree, its hoop the rim of a plastic bucket. “Pay’n Dues” was an iron bar fastened to the side of a building, no backboard, and the net long torn away from the rim.
Through each of B.Angelo’s pieces runs a common thread: the love of the game. “In my travels, I gained perspective on basketball around the world and found it fascinating,” said B.Angelo. “There are guys playing basketball in flip-flops, with a backboard nailed to a palm tree. It’s amazing what people are willing to do to play this game.”
B.Angelo’s work spoke to a lot of people. His first exhibit, a show at Arizona State University, was wildly popular. His images were different, people told him. They captured something the art world hadn’t seen before. And his limited-edition Giclee prints, stretched and mounted on canvas, began to sell.
“HoopArt was the release for me, to keep me competitive and loving the game I’ve always loved,” B.Angelo said. “I’m combining my passion for basketball with my love of photography to ignite that fire for the game in others. I can’t think of a more rewarding career.”
HoopArt.com includes a gift shop, where enthusiasts can purchase his prints on items like coffee mugs, t-shirts, posters and messenger bags. It is a route not taken by many fine artists, but B.Angelo is adamant that the fine art of basketball, at least, should be accessible to everyone.
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