This story appears in SLAM All-Star Vol 2: The Land.
When Daniel Arsham was told that he would become the creative director of the Cleveland Cavaliers, it was such a historic move that even he wouldn’t be able to tell you that he dreamt of it. The opportunity had never existed until he and the Cavs made it one.
The genre-bending artist, who is most well known in the world of art galleries and museum exhibits, and has produced collaborations with Porsche, Dior and KITH, to name a few, became the first creative director in franchise history in the fall of 2020.
Arsham was most recently contracted by recording artist Gunna to design the album cover for his latest project, Drip Season 4, which he brought to life via a casting of the College Park native’s face adorned with an iced-out chain and black angular sunglasses and sky-blue diamonds jutting out of the sculpture’s shoulders, forehead and face.
Arsham’s love and admiration for hoops is reflected in some of his most well-received pieces, including Moving Basketball, which was featured as the centerpiece of the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse Public Art Collection, launched by the family of Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert.
After his installation at the arena, Arsham says numerous conversations with director of brand strategy Grant Gilbert is what led to the brand-new role, placing the contemporary artist in command of the organization’s visual identity.
“I mean, frankly, I sort of just kept telling [Grant], like, You guys need to change this, you need to change that. The jerseys this season are a little bit lacking. You know, court designs. I had comments about a lot of different things, more so just as a fan of the team,” Arsham tells SLAM.
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