A lot of things go hand in hand: wine and cheese, crisps in a sandwich and ice cream on a scorching hot day. But a fusion between football and art is one we never knew we needed, until now. Iconic Irish Whiskey brand Jameson are doing it perfectly, with their latest collaboration with Hard in the Paint. Celebrating their latest limited edition venture Jameson Orange, the brand have looked to London-based artist Jermaine Bates to curate a selection of bespoke designs that represent the flavoursome and rich drink. Paying homage to its zesty and delicious flavour, the artist splashes vibrant shades of orange and green across clean-cut football-style shirts that would be perfect for your very own five-aside.

“When designing this shirt, it was a no brainer – stick with the classic Jameson green, with some clean, vibrant shades of orange to make it pop and full of flavour!”, the artist revealed. “I’m grateful to Jameson for this opportunity to work on designing their new shirts, and especially to have my own hand-painted bottles.”

Having begun his career designing custom football shirts for Premier League players and the England Football team, the artist brings a playful edge to the new launch and brings the essence of the drink to life. Fusing together the two worlds, the artist will be heading down to BOXPARK, Shoreditch this weekend and will be creating unique shirts for fans who are looking for a personal touch. And of course, you’ll be able to taste the delicious triple-distilled whiskey as you shop.

Ahead of the festivities, we caught up with Bates virtually, talking the collaboration, what his art means to him and the best way to enjoy the new drink.

Check out the interview now…

How has this past year been for you?
It’s been a good year, I’ve been grateful to be able to grow and get my artwork out to the masses. I’ve been focused on developing my style and skill set as an artist, trying to perfect my craft in as many ways as possible whilst also building the HARD brand. As well as football shirts, I’m focusing more on hand-painted wearable clothing pieces and have just been figuring out the best way to introduce this to the world. So far the reception has been something I couldn’t imagine, to create things that have clearly broken away from the norm but are still appreciated is a good feeling when you put so many hours into each piece.

Talk us through Hard in the Paint, what does this mean to you?
Hard in the Paint is my life. When the brand started, I had so many ideas that I wanted to bring to life but no connections to the fashion world which was frustrating. So I picked up paintbrush. With paint and a few other techniques, I’ve managed to teach myself over the past couple of years and develop an original and recognisable style. For me, it’s been an outlet in many way – it represents the beauty of the struggle we all face and celebrating overcoming your own mental and creative individual battles.

Everything is hand-painted, do you find anything challenging about this? And what made you go with football shirts?
The hand-painted part is definitely challenging – I try to bridge the gap between art and fashion without moving towards mass production. All my pieces are one-offs made by me which gives me the creative freedom to be able to make what I want, and not have to worry about what’s on “trend”, which is what led to me painting the first football shirt. Being the first to do this, I had to find the right paints and techniques so that each shirt was an art piece but also wearable and washable. Each piece takes at least 40 hours of handy work, so I like to paint on multiple different pieces at one time to keep the creativity flowing.

Talk us through your collaboration with Jameson Irish Whiskey, how did you get involved?
Jameson reached out to me ahead of the drop of their new Orange flavoured whiskey expression and wanted to collaborate on something special to celebrate. Over the past few months, we’ve been working hard to adapt some of my trademark designs and ideas until we got the perfect design. I also created a limited edition run of hand-painted Jameson Orange bottles which was something different from what I usually work on, but as soon as the idea came to mind I knew I had to make it happen.

You paid homage to the flavour with the shades of orange, how important was it to you to stay true to the brand?
With the flavour being orange it was only right! Staying true to my style, I always work with a base colour and then variants of that same colour around to infuse with the design. The next part was to incorporate the classic Jameson green, this sat perfectly with the style and orange tones we were already working with.

Combining fashion and football, these are two things that you love, what does this mean to you?
It’s everything. To have an impact on the fashion world coming from an artistic point of view is the goal. I believe I’ve paved a way that can finally combine the two and be appreciated for not only the aesthetic but the hard work that goes into each item.

Talk us through the new Jameson Orange flavour, what do you love about it and what is your go-to mixer?
Definitely a new favourite of mine. Zesty flavours mixed with lemonade or ginger beer and a slice of orange; you can’t go wrong!

And the launch is this Saturday at BOXPARK Shoreditch, what can we expect?
This Saturday 29th January our limited-edition HARD x Jameson football shirt will be available to buy in two colours, Orange and Green. I’ll be there on the day doing live painting, with the option to have designs added onto your shirt. This is one-off opportunity to get your hands on the collab, so don’t miss out!

What are you most excited for? What is next for you? I’m excited to see where this goes.
I always strive to do things I’ve never done before. I’d love to see the gap between football and fashion draw even closer and perhaps have a personal impact on that too. One day, I’ll be able to watch my shirts on the big screen being worn by iconic teams and players – that’s the dream.

The Jameson X HARD in the Paint shirts will be available to purchase at BOXPARK Shoreditch on 29th January from 11am-7pm. Event-goers can also try Jameson Orange, which combines triple-distilled Jameson Irish Whiskey with natural orange flavouring. All proceeds from the sale of the Jameson x HARD in the Paint collaboration will be donated to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity (GOSH).