The fast and furious on-water battle between SailGP’s nine-strong F50 fleet has been captured against the iconic backdrop of Plymouth’s red and white lighthouse in SailGP’s exclusive Plymouth City Collection.

Released ahead of the Great Britain Sail Grand Prix | Plymouth on July 30/ 31, the collection was designed by Torquay-based artist Becky Bettesworth.

Plymouth city collection - poster

The artwork will adorn T-shirts, hoodies, tote bags and standalone prints, which will be available to buy at the Fan Shop on-site and online at shopsailgp.com.

Bettesworth, who created the design, previously worked at a London-based advertising agency before leaving the capital to set up her own business in Devon.

Since then, she has had an eclectic variety of clients, including Penguin Books, for whom she has designed book covers, and film production company Lionsgate, which commissioned her to create the poster for On Chesil Beach.

Season 3// Great Britain Sail Grand Prix // Plymouth City Collection Becky Bettesworth other artwork

Alongside her freelance work, Bettesworth creates her own travel posters and merchandise, which she sells directly from her website.

“I started creating the posters about 10 years ago and they really struck a chord with people,” she says. “From there, it just snowballed into a business.”

She previously discovered SailGP through Instagram, which proved useful when it came to designing the artwork for the collection.

Season 3 // Great Britain Sail Grand Prix // Becky Bettesworth City Collection artist

“When I came to do the design, I already understood the magnificence of the boats and wanted to portray that element of speed and grandeur through the poster,” she said.

When it came to the brief, Bettesworth was asked to incorporate an iconic landmark synonymous with Plymouth and quickly settled on the city’s famous lighthouse.

“Smeaton’s Tower is an iconic, instantly recognisable view of Plymouth and I chose to design the artwork as if you’re on the water and heading towards it - I thought that would work well.”

Plymouth City Collection - sketch

After her initial sketch was approved, Bettesworth ‘cracked on’ to make the poster a reality. This process includes drawing ‘hundreds of layers of shapes’ by hand that are later scanned into the computer.

“You’ve got the be really methodical and patient,” she said. “It’s hand drawn from a sketch and there are no shortcuts.”

All SailGP merchandise - including the Plymouth City Collection - can be bought online at shopsailgp.com.