FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Entertainment

Drawing The Foul: James "The Beard" Harden, B-Baller, Gets The Illustration Treatment

We don't often talk about sports here at The Creators Project, so when we do, we make it count.

All illustrations via

The last thing you see before all 6'5" and 220lbs of Houston Rockets shooting guard James Harden comes crashing down on your fast break… is an impeccably well-kept swath of facial hair, like an affront to gravity itself, suspended in the courtside breeze. To those few, unlucky enough to be on the receiving end of Harden's open palm, the facial hair which earned Houston Rockets' player the lofty nickname The Beard, is a constant reminder of stifling courtside frustration.

Advertisement

To one Croatian illustrator, however, Harden's hirsute profile provides the perfect source of inspiration: James Harden Illustrated, the new series from Filip Peraić, re-envisions the much-loved, much-feared basketballer as a succession of epic hand-drawn sketches. We don't often write about sports here at The Creators Project, so when we do, we make it count:

From Filip Peraić:

Without creative brief or constraints from the client, this experiment is like training ground for a creative mind. This project is about avoid enslaving an expression to one style/concept. Theme of James Harden’s profile is chosen because of belief that this “constraint” will produce more creative approaches and produce out-of-the-box solutions. Some results will be led by more stylistic/aesthetic idea, some more conceptual or metaphorical [sic].

On his choice of Harden-as-subject: "James Harden is a basketball player, NBA star playing for the Houston Rockets. He is chosen as base of this project because of his unique, awesome bearded profile—the almost icon-like form of his profile serves as great inspiration and food for a designer’s thoughts."

Below, check out more of James Harden Illustrated:

Check out the rest of James Harden Illustrated on the project's website, and on its brand new Facebook page, and more of Peraic's work on the artist's personal website.