PARIS — If Pharrell Williams were given the chance, he would reintroduce the arts competition to the Olympics, reviving a tradition that has been missing for nearly 80 years.
Williams aims to bring arts competitions back to the world’s biggest sporting stage, starting by raising awareness through his star-studded Louis Vuitton event in Paris on Thursday. He passionately shared his goal of reviving the tradition through the 2028 Olympic Games, the night before the Games’ opening ceremony.
“We can remind people that at one point the Olympics actually had the arts as part of all these competitions,” Williams said before the event. “Sculpture, architecture, visual arts. The idea we get to put the art back in. Why not use this moment to raise awareness?”
Art competitions first came to fruition at the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, where medals were awarded in five categories: architecture, literature, music, painting and sculpture. However, the International Olympic Committee ended the competitions at the 1948 Games. An attempt to bring it back was rejected four years later.
Williams, the musician turned designer, hosted the chic A-list event at the Louis Vuitton Foundation building. Attendees included popular figures such as LeBron James, Steven Spielberg, Mick Jagger, Zendaya, Anna Wintour, Charlize Theron, Serena Williams, Rosalía, Snoop Dogg, Queen Latifah and Zac Efron.
Williams called the inside of the event an “indoor carnival.” He curated a select group of world-renowned artists, including KAWS, Daniel Arsham and Derek Fordjour, to design interactive art installations.
Some of the sports represented at the event included archery, tennis, basketball, horse riding and carnival games. “The game starts on the inside tonight,” he said.
Through donations, Williams said he wanted the event to support Olympic hopefuls as well as 36 athletes from 11 different countries competing on this year’s Refugee Olympic Team.
“We get to raise money for the other athletes who don’t have the resources to get the equipment or the proper training equipment,” said Williams, who added that he talked about creating music for the games with Thomas Bach, the president of the IOC. .
The famous producer said he recorded a song titled ‘Triumph is Cosmos’.
“This is like taking a victory lap around the solar system,” he said.
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Summer Olympics AP: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
