Fifteen poster set commissioned by the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (LAOOC) for the Games of the XXIII Olympiad in 1984. The signed limited edition (750) prints were created by both internationally known American artists and young emerging local artists selected by the Committee to commemorate the Games, and Los Angeles’ and the United States’ unique contribution to the contemporary art scene.
The Olympics as an institution is uhhh quite bad and LA 84 was especially evil, but this poster series is one of my favorite things. Everybody loves posting those "sports as art" comparisons, but I think a lot of people still draw a sharp distinction in their minds between sports and art despite those things being intertwined since basically the beginning of humans having sports and art. I also just like that the '84 Olympics were hosted in Reagan's backyard and most of these artists wouldn't have spit on him if he was on fire.
1. Sam Francis (1923–1994) / 2. David Hockney (1937– ) / 3. Carlos Almaraz (1941–1989) / 4. April Greiman (1948– ) & Jayme Odgers (1939– ) / 5. Raymond Saunders (1934–2025) / 6. John Baldessari (1931–2020) / 7. Jennifer Bartlett (1941–2022) / 8. Jonathan Borofsky (1942– ) / 9. Billy Al Bengston (1934–2022)