90'S GOALKEEPER SHIRTS IN PRINT BY NICOLAS MARDONES

We all know football shirts in the 90’s were just simply superior to those produced in the decades both before and after. But goalkeeper shirts especially carry the mantle when it comes to design.

They seemed to represent a time of anything goes. To celebrate this there’s a designer who’s capturing their majesty in print format. His name is Nicolas Mardones – and we caught up with him to find out a bit more around the project.

CK: So let’s cut straight to it, Nicolas – who do you support?

NM: Since I’m from Chile I support my local team Universidad de Chile. But in European football, I’ve always been a huge fan of Liverpool, since the “Miracle of Istanbul”. Also 5 years ago I traveled to Liverpool and fell in love with the city immediately.

CK: We don’t blame you, what a game that was! So for people that might not have heard of you via your work Nicolas, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?

NM: Sure, well my  friends call me ‘Mardo’. I’m a 23 year old Art Director from Chile. Currently I’m working in the world of advertising. I started out in the industry over 10 years ago now.

It all started as a kid – I used to love football wallpapers I saw on the internet. From there I just wanted to learn how to make my own. As a result this progressed into wanting to learn more about design. So yes, pretty much football and design have simply remained a constant in my life.

CK: How would you describe your graphical style?

NM: It’s so hard for me to define my style so I prefer simply for people to be the judge of it. But I love being inspired by the culture of football, music, and even sneakers.

CK: Tell us about this goalkeepers poster project – how did it all start?

NM: I have always been in love with football aesthetics in the 90’s. And I think goalkeepers are the perfect representation of it. So recently and especially now since the quarantine began, I’ve been watching a lot of old football matches. This  made me realise how much the unique personality of each goalkeeper was defined by his jersey. I think that feeling is completely lost in modern football. So that’s when “90’s goalkeepers” idea was born. 

CK: Are the posters available to purchase?

NM: I didn’t start the project with a commercial strategy in mind. They are simply just a little tribute to the players, specifically goalkeepers of the 90’s era. However, since I’ve started releasing them, a few people have asked me where they can buy them or even commission me to produce one especially for them.

CK: What's your next football project or do you think you’ll be sticking with 90’s keepers for a while?

NM: Well actually – I haven’t quite defined it exactly yet, but I would love to make a tribute to one of my favourite players, el “Pibe” Valderrama.

CK: Do you have any designers that you follow and you think others should too?

NM: Yes, I’m a huge fan of David Diehl’s work, I have a print by him! I also really admire Martin Kazanietz’s work. He has a great and unique style.