From Inspiration to Finished Artwork: Behind the Scenes of 2026 World Cup Host City Poster

Every finished piece begins with a blank page, a fleeting idea, exploring possibilities, overcoming challenges, and making countless decisions along the way. Each stage contributes to the final artwork, adding depth, intention, and meaning.

What does it take to transform the energy of a global sporting event into a memorable piece of art? I'm sharing how I created my World Cup host city poster series inspired by Los Angeles, Toronto, and Monterrey.

In this behind-the-scenes look, I'm sharing my process from concept to completion. You'll see how an initial spark of inspiration develops into a finished design, including the sketches, tools, techniques, and creative choices that shape the final result.

Whether you're a fellow creative, an art enthusiast, or simply curious about what happens behind the scenes, I hope this journey offers insight into the thought and care that go into every piece I create.

So let's start at the very beginning: where the idea came from, and why I decided it was worth pursuing

Step 1: Finding Inspiration and Defining the Concept

I have a habit of looking out for inspiration in everyday life, while scrolling online, walking through the city, visiting museums, or simply noticing details in nature, I constantly come across things that make me stop and think, wow, that’s beautiful. 

Sometimes it’s an architectural detail, a color combination in a plant, a vintage object, a sculpture, or even the way light falls across a surface. These moments spark curiosity and invite me to look deeper, just the sudden pull of something beautiful or strange or technically astonishing. Each piece becomes more than just something visually appealing; it becomes a source of research and creative exploration. In this cabinet of curiosities, I catalogue these discoveries for future reference, collecting inspiration like a personal archive of beauty and ideas. 

See some of my inspirations.

With my home town Los Angeles hosting this year’s World Cup, though I am not a crazed soccer/football fan I did get bit by the bug and was inspired to create a host city poster commemorating this tournament. This year is the grandest edition of the tournament in its near-century-old history with a large number of firsts. For the first time the World Cup will feature 48 teams, will be co-hosted by three nations the United States, Mexico, Canada and is lasting 39 days the longest ever. 

For this project, I wanted to create something to remember this historical event that brings different cultures across the globe together to celebrate this tournament. Beyond the official stadiums, host cities are transforming into massive global festivals with colossal outdoor watch parties, fan villages, and interactive cultural exhibits. The global unity creates an immense shared emotional experience where strangers connect, celebrate international diversity, widespread cultural exchange and bond over the universal language of sports.

I focused on the host cities and with 16 options to choose from I went with one from each country, in the USA Los Angeles won out as my home town, in Canada it was Toronto and in Mexico it was Monterrey.

Step 2: Research and Reference Gathering

Once I had a clear direction, I collected visual references to support the design mostly photos and illustrations of the 3 cities and the world cup tournament ball design.

For this project, I considered and researched:

• Plant species – palm trees
• Landmarks – city skyline, beaches, mountains
• Color combinations – each country was designated a color based on their flags                USA – Blue, Canada – Red and Mexico - Green
• Composition ideas – Circle for the ball, ball wave design for the tournament,                    sunset and city silhouettes

I organized my references into a mood board to identify recurring themes and visual connections. This helps me refine the artwork before creating anything digitally.

Questions I considered:

• Which elements are essential?
• Which details can be simplified?
• How can I make this piece unique?

Step 3: Sketching and Early Exploration

My goal is to generate ideas quickly and discover unexpected solutions. Some sketches work immediately, while others reveal what isn’t working. After reviewing the options, I select the concept that best captures the original vision.

With my references in place, I moved into the sketch phase where I made a rough composition of a center circle with the wave ball design, the city skyline and a landmark.

Creative exploration should be fun and unconstrained, whatever comes to mind put it down.

Step 4: Building the Artwork Digitally

Once the sketch was finalized, I moved into my digital workflow. For this project, I used:

• Adobe Illustrator
• Adobe Photoshop
• Wacom Tablet

I began by creating the foundational elements:

1. Setting up the canvas dimensions, I went with 8x10 and 16x20 inches
2. Creating the initial line work of the different elements each city skyline, landmarks
3. Refining shapes and composition
4. Organizing layers for efficiency

As the artwork developed, I focused on maintaining consistency in:

• Line weight
• Scale – fitting into circle
• Visual hierarchy – the landmarks, the skyline, sun, wave design

Challenges I Encountered:

• Balancing visual elements
• Creating movement        
• Simplifying complex details
• Choosing typography styles

This phase often takes the longest because it’s where the concept transforms into a polished design.

Workflow Tip: Working in stages prevents creative overwhelm. Focus on one element at a time rather than trying to perfect everything at once.

Line Art

Adding Detail

Composition 

Texture overlay 

Fonts

Step 5: Choosing Colors, Textures, and Final Details

The colors chosen symbolize the country of origin in the wave design framing the art and in the tint as the background. 

I refined the artwork with finishing touches such as:

• Texture overlays – grain shading
• Shadows and highlights
• Typography - Los Feliz OT and Bahnschrift fonts

One of the biggest challenges during this phase is knowing when to stop. Adding details can enhance a piece, but too many elements may distract from the core message.

I constantly ask myself: “Does this detail improve the artwork or complicate it?”

Los Angeles Poster

Toronto Poster

Monterrey Poster

All Cities Poster

Step 6: Preparing the Final Files

After completing the artwork, I prepared the final files for printing, digital download, and social media

This process included:

• Reviewing the artwork at full size
• Checking alignment and spacing
• Ensuring color accuracy
• Exporting multiple file formats
• Testing print quality

Attention to these details ensures the finished product looks professional both online and in print.

Discover the Versatility of Your Artwork

A single design can come to life across a wide range of products, transforming everyday items into meaningful expressions of creativity and personal style. From wall art and calendars to tote bags, mugs, stationery, home décor, and apparel, each product offers a unique way to experience and enjoy artwork.

                                                                       Los Angeles

Toronto

Monterrey

All Cities

Final Thoughts

Creative growth happens through experimentation, iteration, and curiosity. Not every idea works exactly as planned and that’s part of the process. Each project becomes a stepping stone toward stronger skills and new creative possibilities.

I hope this behind-the-scenes look has offered inspiration and insight into how this artwork came to life.

Thank you for joining me behind the scenes of this project. I hope this glimpse into my creative process inspires you to embrace your own creativity. 

Share your favorite city poster, stage of the process or what inspires your creativity in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you.

If you enjoyed this post, explore more artwork at my portfolio link.