Trophy Wife
This is a series of found images printed on athletic towels. The images represent the most anticipated moment in an athlete’s career, the one moment when the work gets justified. Kissing a trophy, a medal, is a common sight during celebrations, but it is a refreshing, emotional reaction by athletes that can sometime appear robot like. It seemed fitting for them to be printed on an object that plays such an intimate role in the dramatic evolution of the game. It is there whenever you want it, straddling your neck, hanging around knees, wiping sweat, blood, sad tears or happy tears, it is definitely a loyal companion.
The images, more particularly, depict the exact moment when the lips connect with silverware. At this point in the game, when the cup is in your hands, the towel is not needed anymore. The trophy becomes anthropomorphized, kissed like a wife and cradled like a newborn. It is carefully passed around like a baby by a bunch of proud parents, whom, blindly maybe, want to show it to the world.
Oscar Tiné
March 2018