At the U.S. Open, a Filipino artist finds inspiration in Eala-mania
NEW YORK — In a small room on the second floor of an Episcopal church in Queens, a large printer beeps and whirs, spitting out posters inked with bright yellow tennis balls. Fluorescent prints line the walls; a bible sits on the table. The song “Salamin, Salamin” by Filipino girl group Bini plays from a computer.
This is where Pau Tiu, 32, has spent the week designing and printing posters, in support of rising Filipino tennis star Alex Eala.
Just four miles away, Eala beat the United States’ Mary Stoiana, 6-1, 6-2 Tuesday night in her 2026 U.S. Open debut. On Thursday, she will take on Ukraine’s Oleksandra Oliynykova in Louis Armstrong Stadium, where a new run of posters from Tiu’s studio, Bad Student, will feature in the crowd.
Eala has been making tennis history for years, representing a country that loves to show up for its stars. In August, the 21-year-old became the first Filipino player to win a WTA Tour singles title, beating No. 3 Jessica Pegula in the D.C. Open final. In Washington, just as in Toronto, Dubai, Melbourne and other cities all over the world, the Filipino diaspora came out in droves to support their new heroine.
Tuesday night in Queens was no different, as Eala fans filled the 14,000-capacity Louis Armstrong Stadium with Filipino flags and roaring cheers.
Eala-Mania at the U.S. Open
Ava Wallace and Johnny Sweet
Up in the stands sat Tiu, who gave out custom posters reading “LABAN ALEX” — which translates to “Fight, Alex”— to fellow Filipino fans in their row. The posters include a Sampaguita, the Philippines’ national flower, which Eala’s clothing sponsor, Nike, featured on a a visor at Wimbledon, where Eala announced herself to the wider sports world by beating defending champion Iga Świątek.
Pau Tiu designs and prints posters devoted to Alex Eala’s rise as a tennis star from their studio in Queens, N.Y. (Rebecca Tauber / The Athletic)
“We’re all connected, cheering her on. So it’s such a beautiful thing to be part of,” Tiu said during Eala’s first set Tuesday night. “It’s crazy to be surrounded with so many Filipinos, and I feel I’m just back at home, and there’s so much spirit of community, or as we say, kapwa.”
Tiu and their wife, Felize Camille, moved to the United States two years ago so the two of them could legally marry and live out of the closet. Same-sex marriage is not legal in the Philippines, and the couple had to hide their relationship.
They once went on a secret date to a printing class in Singapore, where they learned risograph, a style of printmaking using fluorescent ink and an office-sized printer. A few years later, Tiu started Bad Student.
“It’s the idea of being bad at something first before you get good at it,” Tiu said about the studio’s name. “I’m always a student, always learning, but giving my permission to be bad gives me this freedom to just explore it and have fun and do what I want.”
Pau Tiu printed a new run of posters ahead of Eala’s second-round match against Ukraine’s Oleksandra Oliynykova. (Rebecca Tauber / The Athletic)
Since then, Tiu and Camille have printed art and taught workshops out of the church. During the NBA Finals, they printed a run of posters for the Knicks.
“I told my wife one of my bucket list (items) was to experience sports in New York, because I’ve only just read it, watched it on TV, watched it replayed, everything, absorbed the culture from afar,” Tiu said.
In July, when Eala went viral for her horizontal forehand against Świątek, Tiu’s father requested a poster for the fledgling star.
“He has been nagging me since Wimbledon,” Tiu said.
Tiu started watching tennis a few years ago, and attended one of the U.S. Open’s free days last week. When they got a ticket to Eala’s match on Tuesday, they finally took their dad up on his request, drawing inspiration from vintage posters they brought to the U.S. from home.
“This is very much in the language of Filipino design,” Tiu said
Pau Tiu also produced a risograph poster (right) during the New York Knicks’ NBA Championship run. (Rebecca Tauber / The Athletic)
On Wednesday, Tiu was back at their printer, designing a new run for Eala’s next match. This time, they drew inspiration from a lottery advertisement they saw in New York.
After perfecting the design on their computer, Tiu loaded a drum of yellow ink into the printer. It whirred and spit out another “LABAN ALEX” poster, this time with a row of tennis balls. They loaded up the blue ink, and ran the sheet through again.
“This is big for the Philippines,” Tiu said. “I feel like I’m part of history, and my family is back home awaiting every photo, every video that I sent to them and they’re watching live too.”
Tiu’s brother, Kiko, and his partner, Ashley Palabrica, printed a version of the posters at the Bad Student studio in the Philippines. (Courtesy of Pau Tiu)
When Tiu came to the U.S., they left behind a second risograph printer at the studio in their family home in the Philippines. Once they finished the new design Wednesday afternoon, Tiu sent the file to their brother, Kiko, and his partner, Ashley Palabrica, who run the Philippines branch of Bad Student. More than 8,500 miles away, they printed the exact same “LABAN ALEX” poster, as tennis fans across the Philippines prepare to tune in halfway across the world, despite the 12-hour time difference.
“I feel like I’m in a portal back home… The presence of Filipinos here is so strong, and just hearing the language being spoken so loudly everywhere I go, it warms my heart,” Tiu said. “It’s part of the magic that is Eala-mania.”