Bell have teamed up with renowned Californian skate and surf artist Jimbo Phillips to create seven eye-catching helmet designs.
Phillips – son of Jim Phillips, who designed all the artwork for Santa Cruz Skateboards in the 1970s and 80s – has added his trademark colourful popping eyeballs, skulls and monsters to a full range of mountain bike helmets, including full-faces, cross-country lids and piss-pots.
“Jimbo has worked closely with the Bell graphics team for years,” said creative director Eli Atkins. “It’s all been so well received, we worked with Jimbo to do a proper collection for this year.”
The Jimbo Phillips Collection includes two graphics options on the new Sequence helmet, two on the Variant, two on the Faction skate-style lid and one on the Drop full-face. If you view the Drop and Faction Choke models side by side, a complete scene is revealed.
Co-ordinated graphics on the Faction and Drop helmets create a scene when viewed together
“Generally, people are drawn to Jimbo’s work,” said Atkins. “But skeletons choking each other might be a little too in-your-face for some, so we had Jimbo do a few illustrations in a little more abstract and subtle way. On the whole I think there’s something for everyone.”
The matt titanium Bell Jimbo Sequence cross-country lid has a more understated look
Prices are £24.99 for the Faction piss-pot, £59.99 for the Variant and £79.99 for the Sequence cross-country helmets, and £99.99 for the Drop downhill lid.
The charcoal/black Faction has a stealth look, but still plenty of monsters and eyeballs
Phillips, who lives in Santa Cruz not far from Bell, continues to illustrate for a diverse client base including Santa Cruz Skateboards, Line Skis, The Surfrider Foundation, DC Shoes and skate punk record label Fat Wreck Chords.
This eye-catching Variant lid will certainly get you noticed on the trails
