Sport

At school, we sometimes tend to oppose athletes and artists. However, sport and art often mix and sublimate each other. The meeting of these two disciplines is frequent in the history of art and more particularly in contemporary art. 

Already during Antiquity, the Greeks devoted an absolute cult to the perfect athletic body. On pots and vases, artists painted the exploits of the competitors of the first Olympic Games in the 8th century BC.

Whatever the medium (photography, painting, sculpture, collage...), the musculature and the psychological state of the sportsmen, the places of training or the competitions are inexhaustible sources of inspiration for the artists. Between the representation of reality and the hijacking of a symbol, sport is a recurring theme for young artists.

Discover with Artsper our Olympic podium of artworks!

Photography is probably the first medium that comes to mind when representing sports. It is the only medium that allows us to capture images of the athletes' prowess at full speed. Thus, the shots are taken on the spot to offer a better rendering of the movement and to manage to capture the palpable tension on the field, the team cohesion, the crucial moment...

A leader of the new wave, Gerry Cranham had a career in athletics before becoming a coach. Passionate about photography, he takes pictures of the young people he coaches in order to correct their position and analyze their stride. Very quickly, he decided to convert his hobby into a real job. He became a sports photographer and quickly built a reputation as one of the leading sports photographers in England and internationally. His pictures of rugby, soccer, tennis, wrestling and swimming were published all over the world in the most prestigious magazines such as Sport Illustrated or The Observer. 

But sport also inspired painters and it is found in all artistic movements of the 19th and 20th centuries. In 1853, Gustave Courbet painted "The Wrestlers", a large oil on canvas depicting two men practicing French wrestling in the old hippodrome of the Champs Élysées. To the right, in the background, one can see the audience, cheering the athletes. Among the Impressionists, Claude Monet developed his technique with "Les Régates d'Argenteuil", an 1872 painting in which the boats are reflected in the water in a magnificent way. In modern art, Nicolas de Staël's "Les Footballeurs" represents a soccer field in the middle of a match, but in an abstract way. The players are discernible thanks to the flat colors that make up the team jerseys. 

You too can bring your passions to life through contemporary sports paintings, sculptures and photographs. Discover the work of well-known and emerging artists such as Victor Spahn, Isabelle Picarel, Michel Birot, Chiara Dazi and many others... 

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Print, Marqui Hors série, C215

C215

Print . 50 x 40 x 0.1 cm Print . 19.7 x 15.7 x 0 inch

€690

Sculpture, Hit, Karen Akhikyan

Hit

Karen Akhikyan

Sculpture . 55 x 22 x 20 cm Sculpture . 21.7 x 8.7 x 7.9 inch

€1,627

Painting, Sky and Snow, Klimenko Olena

Klimenko Olena

Painting . 80 x 60 x 2 cm Painting . 31.5 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch

€1,235

Print, Tennis, Gilles Aillaud

Gilles Aillaud

Print . 76 x 56 cm Print . 29.9 x 22 inch

€1,200 €1,080

Painting, Survive and Fight, Rizky Art

Rizky Art

Painting . 50 x 80 x 2 cm Painting . 19.7 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

€1,750

Painting, Ballerina, Martina Hamrik

Martina Hamrik

Painting . 120 x 160 x 6 cm Painting . 47.2 x 63 x 2.4 inch

€4,500

Sculpture, Giants, High jump in Rio, JR

JR

Sculpture . 99 x 55 x 20 cm Sculpture . 39 x 21.7 x 7.9 inch

€10,000

Painting, MOHAMMED, Philippe Niago

Philippe Niago

Painting . 120 x 80 x 2.7 cm Painting . 47.2 x 31.5 x 1.1 inch

€2,000

Sculpture, Polo Porsche Gulf, Ian Philip

Ian Philip

Sculpture . 50 x 40 x 16 cm Sculpture . 19.7 x 15.7 x 6.3 inch

€2,750

Photography, Napoléon, Gerry Cranham

Gerry Cranham

Photography . 40 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 23.6 x 0 inch

€990

Sculpture, Athy, Sophie Inard

Sophie Inard

Sculpture . 64 x 6 x 6 cm Sculpture . 25.2 x 2.4 x 2.4 inch

€2,040

Painting, Surfer, Peter de Boer

Peter de Boer

Painting . 40 x 30 x 2 cm Painting . 15.7 x 11.8 x 0.8 inch

€900

Painting, Jordan, Alain Mimouni

Alain Mimouni

Painting . 100 x 80 x 1 cm Painting . 39.4 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch

€3,200

Sculpture, N° 197, Mario Dilitz

Mario Dilitz

Sculpture . 90 x 35 x 20 cm Sculpture . 35.4 x 13.8 x 7.9 inch

€21,000

Sculpture, Surfer, Michel Haddi

Michel Haddi

Sculpture . 95 x 35 x 63 cm Sculpture . 37.4 x 13.8 x 24.8 inch

€14,000

Photography, Plongeurs, Elisa Haberer

Elisa Haberer

Photography . 60 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography . 23.6 x 23.6 x 0 inch

€2,000

Sculpture, Rider, Petar Iliev

Petar Iliev

Sculpture . 24.5 x 28 x 8 cm Sculpture . 9.6 x 11 x 3.1 inch

€2,100

Photography, Tracks II, Bruno Charoy

Bruno Charoy

Photography . 40 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 15.7 x 0 inch

€800

Painting, Green, Saname

Saname

Painting . 130 x 85 x 2 cm Painting . 51.2 x 33.5 x 0.8 inch

€1,600

Painting, Valley, Nate Plotkin

Nate Plotkin

Painting . 51 x 66 x 2.5 cm Painting . 20.1 x 26 x 1 inch

€4,900

Photography, Capitaine, Isabelle Picarel

Isabelle Picarel

Photography . 53 x 80 x 0.1 cm Photography . 20.9 x 31.5 x 0 inch

€950

Photography, Carré d'art, LAT Archives

LAT Archives

Photography . 90 x 90 x 3 cm Photography . 35.4 x 35.4 x 1.2 inch

€1,200

Photography, Lamb I, Laurent Gudin

Laurent Gudin

Photography . 50 x 50 x 0.1 cm Photography . 19.7 x 19.7 x 0 inch

€1,100

Sculpture, Blue 911, Edu Danesi

Edu Danesi

Sculpture . 120 x 120 x 10 cm Sculpture . 47.2 x 47.2 x 3.9 inch

€6,500

Photography, Sans filet, Vanille Gill ann

Vanille Gill ann

Photography . 32 x 57 x 0.01 cm Photography . 12.6 x 22.4 x 0 inch

€860

Photography, Lelo 1, Cristina Aldehuela

Cristina Aldehuela

Photography . 40 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 23.6 x 0 inch

€1,100

Photography, Ensemble, Julien Poupart

Julien Poupart

Photography . 40 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 23.6 x 0 inch

€950

Photography, Polytechnique, Patrick Gripe

Patrick Gripe

Photography . 40 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 23.6 x 0 inch

€950

Painting, Yellow, Roberta Pinna

Roberta Pinna

Painting . 43.2 x 33 x 20.3 cm Painting . 17 x 13 x 8 inch

€1,627

Photography, Sea quiétude, Mark Lloyd

Mark Lloyd

Photography . 120 x 80 x 2 cm Photography . 47.2 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

€1,850

Painting, Surfeuse, Karine Bartoli

Karine Bartoli

Painting . 73 x 60 x 2 cm Painting . 28.7 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch

€1,200

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