Roald Bradstock | LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE Press Release

LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE · OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE · NOVEMBER 2026

Download Official Press Release (PDF)

LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE Presents Roald Bradstock in Historic Venice–New York Art Collaboration

Olympian Roald Bradstock Connects Art, Sport and Education Across Two Continents

VENICE, ITALY — November 2026 — LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE will present two-time Olympian and internationally recognized artist Roald Bradstock at Palazzo Michiel in Venice on November 21, 2026, from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m., as part of the closing celebrations of the European Cultural Centre's Personal Structures 2026: Confluences.

The participatory event, Faster, Higher, Stronger – Together with LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE, will connect audiences in Venice with art educators attending the New York State Art Teachers Association (NYSATA) Annual Conference in Albany, New York. Participants on both continents will simultaneously contribute to sections of Bradstock's monumental drawing depicting four speed skaters, composed of 5,880 individual two-inch squares.

The collaboration continues a 20-year artistic journey beginning with the 2006 launch of Art of the Olympians in New York's Times Square, inspired by Olympic champion and abstract artist Al Oerter.

At the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games, Bradstock led a 15-panel collaborative painting involving 112 Olympians from 39 countries, including H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco and then-IOC President Thomas Bach. The project formed part of the inaugural IOC Olympian Artists-in-Residence program.

It was also in South Korea that Vancelette first met Bradstock. Visiting his Olympic art initiative, she subsequently documented his work in Metropolitan Magazine New York, writing Arts & the Olympic Games 2020: A Winning Combination with Artist and Champion Roald Bradstock. Vancelette also participated in NBC News interviews during the Olympic closing ceremony.

Vancelette's connection with Monaco and the French Riviera also extends through her international curatorial practice. In 2024, at the invitation of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat Mayor Jean-François Dieterich, she curated ODYSSÉE, featuring actor and artist Billy Zane and French artist Diane Detalle. Presented during the Cannes Film Festival period, the exhibition attracted international attention. During the town's anniversary celebrations, Prince Albert II made a historic visit and greeted Vancelette and Detalle.

H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco, a longtime supporter of Art of the Olympians and Royal Patron of the Al Oerter Foundation, is expected to offer a video message for the November 21 events in Venice and Albany. The message and its public presentation remain subject to final confirmation and media approval.

Launched in Times Square in November 2025, LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE now continues its international journey through the European Cultural Centre's exhibition at Palazzo Mora in Venice. The initiative asks: “What does LOOK UP mean to you?” Through Bradstock's participatory artwork, that question becomes a collective creative act. The November collaboration also supports the Al Oerter Foundation's plans to expand its Olympic art education initiatives in New York State in 2027.

Event Details

November 21, 2026 · 5–6 p.m.
Palazzo Michiel · Venice, Italy
Parallel participation: NYSATA Annual Conference · Albany, New York

Original Coverage & Historical Media

About LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE

LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE is a global creative initiative founded and curated by international curator Rachel D. Vancelette, uniting multidisciplinary voices across contemporary art, fashion, film, music, performance and technology. Launched across three digital billboards in New York City's Times Square on Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 2025, LOOK UP invites participants around the world to respond to one question: “What does LOOK UP mean to you?” Through one-minute video portraits and QR-linked stories, the initiative transforms public spaces into platforms for hope, resilience, imagination and human connection. Its international journey continues in Venice through the European Cultural Centre's Personal Structures 2026: Confluences at Palazzo Mora, with further global collaborations planned. www.lookuptimesquare.com

About Roald Bradstock

Roald Bradstock is a British-born, two-time Olympic javelin thrower, internationally exhibited visual artist and advocate for bringing sport and the arts together. Known as the “Olympic Picasso,” he has spent decades exploring the connections between athletic performance, creativity and artistic expression. His practice encompasses painting, drawing and participatory projects that invite athletes, students and audiences to become makers rather than spectators.

A four-time Olympic artist, Bradstock helped pioneer collaborative art initiatives within the Olympic movement, including the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games project that brought together 112 Olympians from 39 countries. He serves as Executive Director of Art of the Olympians / the Al Oerter Foundation and continues to develop art-and-education collaborations inspired by the Olympic ideals of excellence, friendship and respect. His Venice–Albany project extends that mission by connecting participants across continents through a single shared artwork. roaldbradstock.com

Media Contacts

Bailey Myers · Primary Media Contact, LOOK UP TIMES SQUARE
ix.expert.mail@gmail.com
European Cultural Centre Italy · Press & Public Relations
press@ecc-italy.eu

← Event Press Releases