Keeping your eye on the ball takes on a new meaning when you consider the dedicated World Cup collection by Paraguayan artist Lili Cantero.
Decoratively detailing the lavish stadiums of the upcoming tournament in Qatar – the first to take place in the Middle East – as well as the most sought-after players and teams, Cantero is preparing the final details of her soccer-inspired art show, “8 stadiums, 8 champions, 1 dream: Qatar 2022.”
“We will exhibit a total of 25 works consisting of boots, soccer balls, also canvases and 3D structures,” said 29-year-old Cantero.
Centered on the concept of the number 8, the work aims to highlight the history of the World Cup, which has been won by only eight countries. Brazil has won the most World Cup titles with five, followed by Italy and Germany with four each, Uruguay, Argentina and France with two each and England and Spain with one each.
Supported by the Paraguayan embassy in Qatar, in collaboration with the Katara Cultural Village in the Qatari capital, the exhibition “inspired by football, the World Cup, different cultures” will open on November 18 in Doha, two days before the start of the tournament .
While the hand-painted balls will be at the center of the show, the ornate football boots will be presented inside a 3D screen projecting them onto the layouts of Qatar’s World Cup stadiums.
They also project the image of the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the horse and the falcon, and other symbols associated with Middle Eastern, Latin American and Paraguayan culture.
Cantero’s talent was thrust into the spotlight in 2018. A pair of football boots emblazoned with her art and detailed with a gallery of black and white images of Lionel Messi and his family was sent to the player.
After an image of the Argentina captain posing in the shoes was widely shared on social media, Cantero’s career grew with requests for designs from professional players outside of Paraguay, including former Brazil striker Ronaldinho. She personally presented the shoes to Ronaldinho by illustrating a kiss his mother gave him after he won the Ballon d’Or award in 2005 as the best footballer in the world.
“When I paint about players, what I try to do is try to humanize the figure, because a lot of times the player is like an idol, and a lot of people forget that there’s a person behind that player,” Cantero said.
An insight into Cantero’s unique take on her sports-inspired muse goes back to her youth. From her studio on the outskirts of Asunción, she remembers flipping through the pages of an encyclopedia at home, mesmerized by the works of famous painters. At school, she used to decorate white sandals with bright motifs. In college, she painted sandals again as part of a project where students started their own small businesses. By word of mouth, friends who played soccer began asking her to shine their shoes. Eventually, she began designing for a local sports shop and taking requests from professional athletes.
Just days before her departure for Qatar, Cantero’s inner eye also looks to the future.
“I would like to continue to grow, expanding to work with other regions and countries,” said Canetro, “to work on projects more focused on the United States, since the next World Cup will be in the United States United States, Mexico, Canada.”
