Kevin Love Collects Ed Ruscha and Rashid Johnson. Art Basel Wants to Talk About It.

The conversation between professional athletes and the art world has been building for years. Art Basel Miami Beach is putting it on a stage.

On Thursday, December 3, five-time NBA All-Star Kevin Love and former NFL linebacker Keith Rivers will join Leah Faye Cooper — guest editor of Art Arena × Cultured, the new print publication exploring the intersection of art and sport — for a conversation about collecting, personal style, and how a collection becomes a way of telling your own story. The panel is part of the Art & Sport theme running through Thursday's Conversations program, and it is free and open to the public.

Love's collection spans Ed Ruscha to Rashid Johnson — a range that signals genuine engagement rather than trophy acquisition. Rivers, a USC graduate who played for the Bengals, Giants, and Bills before retiring in 2015, has spent the years since developing his practice as a collector and curator. Both represent a generation of athletes who treat art as a serious pursuit rather than a lifestyle accessory.

The panel is moderated by Leah Faye Cooper, former digital style director at Vogue, whose reporting bridges athlete identity, fashion, and culture. Art Arena × Cultured — the publication she guest-edits — focuses specifically on women artists and athletes, and its launch at Art Basel Miami Beach is itself a statement about where the conversation is heading.

The conversation takes place at 12:15PM in the Auditorium (Grand Ballroom), Level 2 North, Miami Beach Convention Center. Book through the Art Basel app. Walk-in welcome on a first-come, first-served basis.