In their 2024-25 season, the Minnesota Timberwolves collaborated with nine local artists to launch a merchandise series that blended Timberwolves basketball with the creativity of the Twin Cities.
The Timberwolves Artist Series featured graphic design alum Matt Kunes, owner of Motelprint Studios in Minneapolis, whose game-day exclusive hoodie was dropped at the Dec. 19, 2024, home game versus the New York Knicks.
Kunes discovered printmaking at UW-Stout, where Professor Brian Ritchie taught him the process of creating clean and precise detail-oriented prints. He developed a passion for screen printing and lithography during a study abroad trip to Germany.
His artwork is inspired by elements of the natural world and by outdoor activities.
“I like observing nature’s interactions upon itself and then contemplating how I interpret those interactions. I strive to create abstract but realistic creatures by using striking lines and vibrant colors,” said Kunes, a 2002 graduate.
After a weekend mountain biking through granite hills and towering pines on the Iron Range in northern Minnesota, Kunes drew inspiration for his Artist Series hoodie from the pack mentality of a bike posse. “We take turns leading on the trail, which in turn makes everyone a stronger rider. Much like in basketball or any team sport,” he said. “If the leader is stoked, the whole team will rise up and jam just as hard or harder than the leader.”
That sense of connection and the thrill of being part of something bigger – much like a wolf pack – is something Kunes hopes fans feel when they wear his hoodie, which features the North Star on the front, symbolizing guidance and leadership. The back showcases a near-symmetrical collage of three wolves’ faces above a plain by trees. Splashes of navy, blue, light blue and lime green make the abstract scene pop like a stained-glass window.
Kunes grew up in Colorado as a Denver Nuggets fan and even saw Michael Jordan play. He gave basketball a shot in junior high school but then pivoted from organized team sports to skateboarding and snowboarding.
“The game has changed a bit – so many three-pointers. But I still watch the finals, and with the T-Wolves getting stronger every year, it’s hard not to support your local hoops team,” said Kunes, an artisan and installer for Shea Makes, a branch of Shea Design, while maintaining his studio.
The graphic design and interactive media program is part of the School of Art and Design, one of the largest public art schools in the Midwest. It also offers bachelor’s degrees in animation and digital media; game design and development-art; illustration; industrial and product design; interior design; studio art; arts administration and entrepreneurship; fashion design and development; and video production, and an M.F.A. in design.
