eBay is offering a special charity sale of basketballs by Chicago-based artist Carlos Rolón in two limited edition designs to benefit Project Backboard. The sale launched on February 18 at ebay.com/carlosrolon and is live now. All proceeds support Project Backboard’s efforts to improve public outdoor basketball courts and collaborate with artists to create unique spaces for play, including an upcoming renovation in San Juan, Puerto Rico that were damaged by Hurricane Maria. In less than 24 hours following the launch, the signed artist edition titled Pa’Lante sold out. The open edition Salinas basketballs are still available for purchase.
Image Courtesy Carlos Rolón Studio & Project Backboard
The Open Edition ($80, pink basketball with banana leaf), titled “Salinas” (2018) comes with a carrier net bag. Now sold out, the limited Artist Edition ($210, chartreuse basketball with floral prints), titled “Pa’Lante” (2018) is hand-signed by Rolón and includes a wood embossed ring stand and signed letter of authenticity. The designs of the basketballs were inspired by Carlos Rolón’s Puerto Rican origins and the floral patterns on the balls are a direct reference to the flora and fauna of his native country. Both pieces will be displayed at All-Star Weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina.
“With this special artist-designed exclusive, we’re giving our 179 million active buyers a chance to own limited edition artworks that make a difference,”
said Sam Bright, Vice President of Soft Goods at eBay.
“This event is uniquely eBay, illustrating how the power of our platform can connect buyers and sellers across the intersection of art, culture, and sports to impact important causes.”
Says Carlos Rolón,
“The design on the ‘Pa’Lante’ basketball is drawn from a new body of work created for my solo exhibition at the New Orleans Museum of Art, featuring paintings that pay homage to my Puerto Rican heritage. It’s a nice collectors item, and will help support Project Backboard through this eBay for Charity sale.”
About Project Backboard
Project Backboard renovates public outdoor basketball courts and collaborates with local artists to create site-specific works of art for the court surface in order to strengthen communities and inspire multi-generational play. Project Backboard has worked in cities around the United Stated including Memphis, TN; Los Angeles, CA; Cincinnati, OH; and New Rochelle, NY. projectbackboard.org
About Artist Carlos Rolón
Rolón has had solo exhibitions at The Dallas Contemporary, Dallas; Bass Museum of Art, Miami; Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, UK; Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico; Museo de Arte de Ponce, San Juan, Puerto Rico; New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans, LA and CAM Contemporary Art Museum, St. Louis. His work has also been exhibited in group shows at The Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; Marta Herford Museum, Herford, Germany; Museum Het Domein, Sittard, The Netherlands; Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego; Museo del Barrio, New York and Centro Atlantico de Arte Moderno (CAAM), Canary Islands; Oakland University Art Gallery, Michigan and Museo de Arte de Ponce, Puerto Rico.
In 2007, Rolón represented Ukraine in the 52nd Venice Biennale. He is a recipient of the Joan Mitchell Foundation award for Painting and Sculpture. Rolón’s work is included in the following public collections: Bass Museum of Art, Miami; Brooklyn Museum, New York; City of Chicago Public Art Collection; Deagu Art Museum, Deagu; Museo del Barrio, New York; Museo de Arte de Ponce, Puerto Rico; Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, San Juan; Museum Het Domein, Sittard, The Netherlands; Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego; Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Kansas City; New Orleans Museum of Art and Pinchuk Art Centre, Kiev, Ukraine, among others.
About eBay for Charity
eBay for Charity helps enable members of the eBay community to connect with and support their favorite charities when they buy or sell in the U.S. and abroad. Sellers can donate up to 100 percent of the proceeds to a charity of their choice, while buyers can add a donation to their purchase during checkout. To date, nearly $102 million dollars has been raised for charity by the eBay community.
