The miniature basketball shooting game is an amusement park and arcade staple – a popular pastime that pits players side-by-side in a competitive mania as the clock ticks down to zero. But industrial designer Calen Knauf’s take on the popular game Home Court for Reigning Champ looks nothing like those fairground playthings, interpreting the arcade game with an artful aesthetic that combines one part Damien Hirst with two parts Damian Lillard.
Calen Knauf’s portfolio of work is highlighted by a handful of projects in collaboration with tastemaker brands such as Stussy, Dover Street Market, and Tetra. But perhaps even more interesting is the Canadian designer’s curious explorations of materials populating his own catalog of design offerings, utilizing everything from the common sponge, to shammies, and brush bristles. Knauf’s latest project in collaboration with Vancouver sports culture and fashion brand, Reigning Champ, also utilizes an amalgamation of materials in an unexpected manner, transforming the often gaudy game of arcade hoops into something closer to a museum gallery exhibition.
Constructed from composite wood panels, tempered glass, and stamped metal, Knauf’s vision of the basketball game takes on a desaturated, minimalist-modern approach to the hoop’s hardwood aesthetic. The wood panel construction also accurately reproduces the sound of ball-on-court action with every made or missed shot.
Enclosed within panels of tempered glass, Home Court invites two players to shoot toward a pair of powder-coated steel rims embellished with hand-knotted cotton and silk nets locally sourced from a Vancouver-based artisan, ensuring nothing but the smoothest “swish.” Knauf’s game may be playful, but the machine is definitely no plaything. Each unit is made-to-order and priced in the ballpark of an art gallery exhibition rather than your typical Dave & Busters arcade machine.
Players are invited to test their inner Steph Curry with a set of ten white miniature composite leather basketballs.
Simple push button controls, a small red LED scoreboard for tallying each hoop’s score, and built-in sensors are all bespoke to Home Court.
The $50,000 Home Court will be available on a made-to-order basis, in extremely limited quantities. Learn more at reigningchamp.com.
