Paolozzi’s Leith Athletic strip is pitch perfect

Artist Eduardo Paolozzi has netted a new generation of fans with his iconic designs inspiring a unique football shirt which is raising awareness and funds for Leith Athletic.

The football club, established in 1887 and which has spawned generations of talented players, has produced a ground breaking and eye-catching strip which is being snapped up by local fans and collectors the world over.

The Paolozzi shirt is the brainchild of Leith Agency designer Scott Dawson and has been four years in the making after he offered his services to help promote the popular club at the heart of the Leith community.

Working with club officials and after securing the support and approval of The Paolozzi Foundation, the result is a striking shirt which is  true the club’s black and white colours but unlike any contemporary football strip.

More than 500 have been ordered for a new production run, including 250 shirts heading to a French company which will include the Leith Athletic top as part of a subscriber’s package sent out worldwide to collectors.

In addition to raising awareness in Leith and surrounding communities, funds raised will be used to establish a girls team and a ladies team to compete in league competition.

Leith Athletic chairman Leighton Jones, said: “When Scott produced his original designs and storyboard I just about fell off my seat. The strip was a standout and I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

“Paolozzi attended Leith Academy and we are all aware of the ‘big foot’ statue at Picardy Place, so it was a natural and brilliant connection to make with his local community.

“The initial run of the shirt caused a huge stir, our social media has exploded, we have gone from just two girls to 32 at the club and scarves with the same design sold out within one hour. We want to create a pathway for young girls to play football and to establish a ladies team and funds raised with help us do that.”

Scott Dawson said he approached Leith Athletic with the proposal because he has always been interested in the positive effect football clubs can have within their community.

He said: “This one just made sense, Paolozzi is from Leith and his family members are said to have played for the club in years gone by. It would have been his 100th birthday this year so, with the blessing of The Paolozzi Foundation, we pulled his iconic screenprint patterns into the Leith Athletic strip to create the special edition kit, with all proceeds going to the women and girls teams.

“So far we’ve had orders from places like England, France, The Netherlands, Australia, Brazil and America, it’s been huge for the club. We’re on track to sell way over 500 products (shirts and scarves) so it’s looking as though we’ll raise a significant sum for the cause.

“Leith has such a creative history, so it’s great to see art and football come together like this. The best thing about the campaign so far is that it’s raised the profile of the club within the community and shown how supportive Leithers are of positive community causes. So this will hopefully just be the start of something bigger for the club.”

The son of Italian immigrants from Lazio, Paolozzi graduated from the Edinburgh School of Art and forged a hugely successful international career in a number of mediums, including graphic art, sculpture, ceramics as well as holding important European teaching posts.

He is widely considered to be one of the pioneers of pop art. His large scale commissions include the colossal statue Newton after Blake at the British Library and vibrant mosaics at Tottenham Court Road underground station in London, and Edinburgh’s Manuscript of Monte Cassino outside St Mary’s Cathedral, which was gifted to the city in 1991 by Sir Tom Farmer.

Adrian Barr-Smith, Trustee and Secretary of the Paolozzi Foundation, said: “The Paolozzi Foundation is delighted to support the club with the redesign of their football shirt, which reflects some of Paolozzi’s imagery.

“The artist was born and raised in Leith, where his family owned a sweetshop and in which he worked as a young boy. The Foundation has also donated a Paolozzi print for the Leith Athletic clubhouse.”

• The special edition Leith Athletic Paolozzi shirt can be ordered up until 8 March through www.hopeandglorysportswear.co.uk
• The Paolozzi at 100 exhibition, celebrating the centenary of his birth on 7 March, is on at the National Gallery of Scotland’s Modern Two gallery until Sunday 21 April, free admission.