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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Photography, Ali I, Gerry Cranham

Gerry Cranham

Photography - 30 x 45 x 0.1 cm Photography - 11.8 x 17.7 x 0 inch

$1,178

Print, Basket, Azucena Gonzalez

Azucena Gonzalez

Print - 80 x 60 x 1 cm Print - 31.5 x 23.6 x 0.4 inch

$356

Fine Art Drawings, Scène de corrida, Yves Brayer

Yves Brayer

Fine Art Drawings - 23 x 32 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9.1 x 12.6 x 0.4 inch

$1,547

Painting, Bliss, Mathieu Questel

Mathieu Questel

Painting - 120 x 120 x 2 cm Painting - 47.2 x 47.2 x 0.8 inch

$5,949

Photography, Borg II, Gerry Cranham

Gerry Cranham

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

$1,071

Photography, Everton fans, Gerry Cranham

Gerry Cranham

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

$1,071

Painting, Air Jordan, Kapea

Kapea

Painting - 116 x 73 x 2.5 cm Painting - 45.7 x 28.7 x 1 inch

$1,725

Fine Art Drawings, Untitled, Patrick Villas

Patrick Villas

Fine Art Drawings - 50 x 65 cm Fine Art Drawings - 19.7 x 25.6 inch

$1,428

Painting, Porsche speed, Spaco

Spaco

Painting - 45 x 38 x 2 cm Painting - 17.7 x 15 x 0.8 inch

$393

Painting, CR7 Portugal, Orest Hrytsak

Orest Hrytsak

Painting - 195 x 130 x 2.5 cm Painting - 76.8 x 51.2 x 1 inch

$29,744

Photography, Foot de rue, Uwe Ommer

Uwe Ommer

Photography - 40 x 48 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 18.9 x 0 inch

$1,178

Painting, Runners in Red, Mike Jacobs

Mike Jacobs

Painting - 61 x 45 x 2 cm Painting - 24 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch

$1,166

Painting, Sailing, Trayko Popov

Trayko Popov

Painting - 70 x 70 x 2 cm Painting - 27.6 x 27.6 x 0.8 inch

$1,785

Photography, Planète Mars, Rodrigo

Rodrigo

Photography - 35.6 x 26.7 x 0.1 cm Photography - 14 x 10.5 x 0 inch

$1,902

Photography, La pelota, Rodrigo

Rodrigo

Photography - 22.6 x 33.9 x 0.1 cm Photography - 8.9 x 13.3 x 0 inch

$1,902

Fine Art Drawings, Untitled, Joan Albert

Joan Albert

Fine Art Drawings - 44 x 47 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 17.3 x 18.5 x 0 inch

$714

Painting, Bullfight, Benavente Solis

Benavente Solis

Painting - 35 x 41 x 1 cm Painting - 13.8 x 16.1 x 0.4 inch

$2,379

Painting, Marathon 9, Arno Lanzi

Arno Lanzi

Painting - 30 x 30 x 1 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch

$797

Painting, Marathon 8, Arno Lanzi

Arno Lanzi

Painting - 30 x 30 x 1 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch

$797

Painting, Marathon 7, Arno Lanzi

Arno Lanzi

Painting - 30 x 30 x 1 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch

$797

Painting, Marathon 6, Arno Lanzi

Arno Lanzi

Painting - 30 x 30 x 1 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch

$797

Painting, Marathon 5, Arno Lanzi

Arno Lanzi

Painting - 30 x 30 x 1 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch

$797

Print, Death04026, Death NYC

Death NYC

Print - 32 x 45 x 0.1 cm Print - 12.6 x 17.7 x 0 inch

$237

Sculpture, Narturo, Manuel Mediavilla

Manuel Mediavilla

Sculpture - 33 x 20 x 12 cm Sculpture - 13 x 7.9 x 4.7 inch

$4,759

Photography, Géants, Bertrand Desprez

Bertrand Desprez

Photography - 48 x 40 cm Photography - 18.9 x 15.7 inch

$773

Painting, Gym bag 1, Katalin Soós

Katalin Soós

Painting - 40 x 60 x 3 cm Painting - 15.7 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch

$535

Painting, Flyin' high, Bern Foster

Bern Foster

Painting - 72 x 50.8 x 0.1 cm Painting - 28.3 x 20 x 0 inch

$5,830

Painting, Mirrors,, Roman Rembovsky

Roman Rembovsky

Painting - 50 x 59.9 x 2 cm Painting - 19.7 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch

$2,448

Photography, Brasil 2, João Luiz Bulcão

João Luiz Bulcão

Photography - 30 x 45 x 0.1 cm Photography - 11.8 x 17.7 x 0 inch

$785

Fine Art Drawings, Le grand saut 5, Agathe Wagner

Agathe Wagner

Fine Art Drawings - 50 x 70 x 2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 19.7 x 27.6 x 0.8 inch

$595

Painting, Sunny beach, Klimenko Olena

Klimenko Olena

Painting - 50 x 35 x 2 cm Painting - 19.7 x 13.8 x 0.8 inch

$553

Painting, Marathon, Klimenko Olena

Klimenko Olena

Painting - 70 x 50 x 2 cm Painting - 27.6 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch

$1,368

Fine Art Drawings, Untitled, Joaquín Xaudaró

Joaquín Xaudaró

Fine Art Drawings - 16 x 11 cm Fine Art Drawings - 6.3 x 4.3 inch

$1,547

Photography, Evasion, Olivier Morin

Olivier Morin

Photography - 30 x 40 x 1 cm Photography - 11.8 x 15.7 x 0.4 inch

$785

Painting, Movement, Klimenko Olena

Klimenko Olena

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

$363

Photography, Tracks XVI, Bruno Charoy

Bruno Charoy

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

$952

Painting, Portrait #03, Koba

Koba

Painting - 24 x 30 x 2 cm Painting - 9.4 x 11.8 x 0.8 inch

$274