Chick Chat: Beyond The Court With Artist Andrea Bergart
MEET ANDREA BERGART. ARTISTIC MAVEN. DOPE DESIGNER. CREATIVE CONNOISSEUR. BALLER BABE.
Creativity is about connecting things. Art and design can connect people, places, and things giving birth to inspiration. Creativity allows for vast opportunities to see how different niches can overlap, crossing over into each other’s worlds. This is how we met artist, Andrea Bergart. Using her surroundings as her muse, Andrea has created an amazing world of playful color and patterns inspired by her own experiences.
We were first drawn to Andrea through her basketball purses and clutch bags. Refreshingly innovative and DOPE AF, these accessories were a sneaker lover’s dream. While many of us were wishing we were in New York recently to grab a basketball clutch at the “Reimagined” Collection release, we were elated to see a recent drop of Andrea’s own collection for purchase. Call it love and basketball - touching back to her roots, travels and passion for sports. Or call it a baller babe with an incredible eye for design and fashion. Regardless, we see Andrea as a real BOSS BABE that is continuously making big waves with her artistic flair.
We were honored to have the opportunity to chat with Andrea about her eclectic style, baller bags, and how art has a way of seeping into everything. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and Andrea paints a gorgeous picture each time. Let’s get to know more about the artist, in her own words, below. Keep scrolling.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH INSPIRATION...
As far as I remember, I’ve always enjoyed creating and working with my hands. I can’t imagine doing anything besides art and designing. Today I’m inspired by my life in New York- I enjoy how people express themselves through fashion, I take note of prints and colors I spot on the subway, metallic wrappers and trash on the street, my @downtowngirlsbball teammates are a huge source of inspiration as well as my trips to Africa where color and patterned textiles are celebrated.
I have two bodies of work- work made in my art studio and work that leads me outside into the landscape. The cement truck murals and my recent sailboat sail painting take my work into new environments and contexts. I want the public work to be exciting and unexpected. Also, I’m really only interested in painting images on moving vehicles where the landscape is constantly shifting.
I like the idea of hybrids- I love how the cement trucks are delivering cement in New York every day and how the sailboat is a common and functional vehicle. I guess that’s where the basketball bag came about- I mean, the balls themselves aren’t playable anymore but they are used in a new and unexpected way- I enjoy surprising the viewer by giving the balls a new purpose.
CHANNELING SPORTY SPICE.
I grew up playing sports - soccer, volleyball and basketball. I remember having my first poignant experience with abstraction while looking at my coach’s dry erase board. Seeing the simple line drawing of the court and envisioning my body in relation to this schematic really stuck with me. These memories continue to influence how I structure my paintings. I think of my paintings as fantasy courts.
Streetwear is exciting to me. I love how makeshift it can be- how raw and thrown together it feels - the immediacy of it all. In my studio, I’m often painting the colors that I’m wearing that day.. or sometimes I come up with wild color combos from what I throw together and then translate that into my work and vice versa.
I also think that sports and art having a moment in fashion right now – which is exciting. I’ve always felt like a weirdo playing sports and being an artist and it feels good to have some points of contact between these worlds.
BALL IS LIFE.
I played basketball with my dad and brother growing up and played on my first team in 4th grade. It was always a fun and social thing for me and I always had a tight group of teammates / girlfriends.
Call Your Ball Friends started when I met my bestie, co-host, artist and teammate, Cecilia Salama. We were joking around on the court one day with fellow artist friend, Keltie Ferris, pretending we were on sort of a talkshow / halftime report about art and ball- later that joke became a reality- we got sponsored by Adidas to shoot two seasons and even interviewed a WNBA player, Morgan Tuck.
THE SNEAKER GIRL'S DREAM BAG...
I started carrying a basketball around with me in New York on my way to @downtowngirlsbball practice and it felt so empowering. I was like, huh, why does this feel so good? I think because we are so used to seeing NY basketball courts full of men and rarely see women taking over. Also, I never see women dribbling on the street or carrying a ball around. I wanted to change this!
My team inspires me regularly- we are all artists and creatives and we express ourselves through our style of ball and also our personal street style. I made the bags with my teammates in mind as the perfect models. I wanted to create a beautifully designed bag but also fuse that with power and fierceness.
ON THE "REIMAGINED" COLLECTION CURATED BY AN ALL FEMALE CAST OF DESIGNERS.
Why can’t all women teams design more often!? They did such a great job. I got the AJ1 Lover xx and love them. It’s fun to wear colored socks under them. *smiles*
SNEAKERS ROTATION IN 3..2..1
Raf Simons x adidas Response Trail Robot Sneakers are my current fave street shoes, Charles Barkley Nike Chuck Posite “Cave Purple” are for bball, and my multi colored adidas Alphabounce sneakers.
SHOP ADIDAS ALPHABOUNCE SNEAKERS BELOW
ON THE IMPORTANCE OF #CHICKSPIRATION...
It’s super important to champion other women! That’s why we created Call Your Ball Friends – it’s a platform to show competent and powerful women on and off the court.
FOLLOW THAT DREAM SHAWTY...
Dream big- don’t worry if your idea seems a little crazy- go with your gut and make what you want to see and what is missing in this world! Also, a lot of people, including myself, get motivated when they surround themselves with energetic and open people.
Want to connect more with Andrea? Follow her on social platforms and take an e-stroll through her website to see her artwork and products for sale. We heard from a little birdy that more basketball clutch bags will restock in a couple of weeks. *WINK*
Andrea's Instagram HERE
Andrea's Website HERE
Call Your Ball Friends HERE
UPDATE FOR THE BALLER BABES:
If you love Andrea's Nike and Spaulding basketball clutches... we have a release alert for a brand new bag! Andrea has dropped a JORDAN basketball clutch that is a MUST-HAVE. Check out her website HERE for details. Note: These tend to sell out, just FYI. Check out snaps below.
