New York showed up and showed out. Over a two-day basketball-fueled extravaganza, Pinterest and Highsnobiety brought together the city’s sharpest hoopers, creators, and culture shapers to unveil their new zine featuring New York Liberty star guard—and recent Frontpage alum—Natasha Cloud. From a community knockout tournament to a flash-tattoo party, the moments were so good we’ll be using them as inspo for our next Pinterest board.
To tip off the festivities, Pinterest invited die-hard hoopers to the Liberty’s home borough of Brooklyn. As the sun dipped low on a balmy Friday night, McLaughlin Park came alive. Family, friends, and collaborators laced up, locked in, and prepared to take their best shot at the “Shoot Your Shot” activation. Rapper Cleotrapa and fashion influencer JBADV$$ hosted the evening, bringing bars and bold fits (respectively) to the court, like only New York natives could. Calling play-by-play on the action, the electric duo hyped up the crowd with megaphones as participants prepped for action. Facing off were Team Pinterest and Team Highsnobiety, with bright-eyed competitors lined up at the hoop, sporting their assigned red and black jerseys, jostling for the top spot and the chance to attend the exclusive zine launch party the next day.
And the follow-through was anything but a cooldown. On Saturday, Pinterest cranked the energy up a notch, transporting guests to “Cloud 9”—an intimate mixer inside WSA’s Red Room, where the winners from Friday had the chance to kick it with Tash herself (those who didn’t make the cut were able to take home a print copy of the custom Frontpage memento—arguably still a win). Draped in red from floor to ceiling, a nod to Pinterest’s signature color, the whole afternoon exuded big “mood board” energy, complete with live tattooing on offer from Brooklyn-based artist and founder of Girls Only Studio + Collective Cake and dance-heavy tunes spun by Mellow Domingo.
Cake, in partnership with the pro hooper, designed a stylized flash sheet inspired by the love of hoops, the Cloud-verse, and Tash’s very own Pinterest tattoo board. Like most of us, the pair turned to the digital image curator to visually communicate their distinct visions, with Natasha and Cake sharing a slew of pinned designs from their own personal boards. The result? Nine rarefied tats that balanced the artist’s distinct visual language with the ball player’s undeniable on-court edge.
“When you think WNBA and tattoos…if [Natasha] isn’t the first person to come to mind, you bugging,” Cake shares with an undeniable certainty—and it’s hard to disagree. For T Cloud, tattoos are vessels of personal style. Over the course of her career, the WNBA champion has accumulated a unique sleeve of permanent art, tailoring her ink like one would curate their Pinterest feed. It is these tattooed memories that serve as tangible and permanent manifestations of life, telling the story of her singular journey to date.
When Tash pulled up to the Red Room, she was greeted by a frenzy of iPhone front cameras snapping candid selfies and a clamoring crowd praying for the chance at an autograph. There were hugs, beaming smiles, and plenty of Pinspo to go around; peers and collaborators took turns posing with Natasha, emulating the infectious energy of the giant hanging portraits of herself plucked straight from the pages of the editorial keepsake.
Still, the biggest question of the afternoon remained: “Are you getting a tattoo?” Just the prospect of new ink filled the room with a sort of excitement. The dedicated photo wall doubled as a large-scale flash sheet, giving guests the opportunity to select a specific design and bring it to life on their own skin. For Natasha, the question was a no-brainer, as she fittingly selected the half-bitten apple—an homage to NYC. For those who didn’t want to commit to the permanent option, a temporary tattoo dispenser was available, offering individual designs at random.
From jump ball to the final buzzer, Pinterest and Highsnobiety kept us on our toes as they rolled out their latest slam dunk in print. Because in culture, where the game never stops, Natasha proves to us that authenticity is the ultimate trophy.
