Artist Laynie Hail’s way of affection for the Atlanta Hawks is a work of art, literally amazing. The Atlanta native Laynie Hails has created an “Icey” mosaic painting of the Hawks star guard Trae Young and a red velvet cake of the Hawks’ rising star Kevin Huerter.

The portrait caught Young’s attention on Twitter before Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the hawks and Milwaukee Bucks, he quoted her tweet with “Amazing! ❄️❤️.”

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Hails responded to that and said, “My initial reaction was just an overwhelming sense of pride that not only did he see it but took the time to say something.” Hails has always been a sports lover all her life, she grew up with a sports-obsessed dad and played soccer, however, basketball wasn’t in the picture until this.

Hails said she has never been into basketball as much as other sports so while and she had just casually followed the hawks her whole life, but now she is interested in it. She isn’t limited to one medium when it comes to her art, she just loves creating art in different ways, though hawks are often a muse. ” I’m never scared to try new ways to make art,” said Hails, who works as a paralegal in Atlanta. “Using the materials for Trae was my first time using crushed glass.” 

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Her whole life she has been making art and loves to explore and experiment with things. Hails has immersed herself in many things from drawing and painting to photography, sewing, and interior and floral design. She has also tried her hands in custom-designed sugar cookies and cakes.

Hails said the Hawks have been on her mind since the playoffs began. She was inspired by Young’s “Ice Trae” nickname, his shimmy shoulder move, and his performance in the playoffs, which made her think about a piece of art in response. She wanted to use real ice for her art but due to the summer season, she shifted to other metaphors for ice and settled on glass. 

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Then she was able to source crushed glass pieces in various shades of light blue and after that, all came together. Hails used an acrylic sheet on the canvas as she wanted her theme to be ice/glass.  She drew a photo of Young on the sheet and covered it with a strong adhesive to attach the crushed glass.  As of now, Young is Hails’s favorite NBA player.