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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Fine Art Drawings, The Dancer, Maurice Van Moppes

Maurice Van Moppes

Fine Art Drawings - 26.5 x 18.5 x 0.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 10.4 x 7.3 x 0.2 inch

€300

Sculpture, Hit, Karen Akhikyan

Hit

Karen Akhikyan

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

€1,603

Painting, À Bicyclette, David Jamin

David Jamin

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

€670

Painting, Skaters24, Karine Bartoli

Karine Bartoli

Painting - 89 x 116 x 4 cm Painting - 35 x 45.7 x 1.6 inch

€1,600

Painting, Wind, Galya Popova

Galya Popova

Painting - 50 x 40 x 2 cm Painting - 19.7 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch

€1,350

Painting, The snow, Sylvie Eudes

Sylvie Eudes

Painting - 100 x 100 x 4 cm Painting - 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch

€4,500

Photography, Strike, Rodrigo

Rodrigo

Photography - 27.1 x 35.1 x 0.1 cm Photography - 10.7 x 13.8 x 0 inch

€1,599

Photography, Imsouane, Rodrigo

Rodrigo

Photography - 25.4 x 19.1 x 0.1 cm Photography - 10 x 7.5 x 0 inch

€1,250

Photography, Skiing Holiday, Slim Aarons

Slim Aarons

Photography - 50.8 x 76.2 cm Photography - 20 x 30 inch

€3,710

Photography, Dunk, Rodrigo

Rodrigo

Photography - 23.1 x 35.6 x 0.1 cm Photography - 9.1 x 14 x 0 inch

€2,999 €2,700

Photography, Rise, Yevgeniy Repiashenko

Yevgeniy Repiashenko

Photography - 91 x 91 x 0.1 cm Photography - 35.8 x 35.8 x 0 inch

€1,475

Painting, Swimmers, Federico Cortese

Federico Cortese

Painting - 37.8 x 69.9 x 0.5 cm Painting - 14.9 x 27.5 x 0.2 inch

€614

Photography, By My Side 2, Antoine Rose

Antoine Rose

Photography - 35 x 35 x 0.5 cm Photography - 13.8 x 13.8 x 0.2 inch

€1,100

Painting, Game over, Baptiste Laurent

Baptiste Laurent

Painting - 105 x 105 x 0.3 cm Painting - 41.3 x 41.3 x 0.1 inch

€2,750

Photography, Splash!, Richard Dunkley

Richard Dunkley

Photography - 76.2 x 50.8 cm Photography - 30 x 20 inch

€593

Painting, Mon Vélo, David Jamin

David Jamin

Painting - 80 x 80 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

€2,550

Painting, Well..., Wencke Uhl

Wencke Uhl

Painting - 100 x 80 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

€2,048

Painting, Over Here, Wencke Uhl

Wencke Uhl

Painting - 100 x 80 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

€2,048

Painting, Compétition, Sylvie Eudes

Sylvie Eudes

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

€1,100

Painting, Sans-titre, Philippe Cognée

Philippe Cognée

Painting - 10 x 15 x 0.2 cm Painting - 3.9 x 5.9 x 0.1 inch

€1,100

Painting, The grey Mustang, Pappay

Pappay

Painting - 50 x 50 x 4 cm Painting - 19.7 x 19.7 x 1.6 inch

€880

Painting, Plunge, Wencke Uhl

Wencke Uhl

Painting - 90 x 70 x 2 cm Painting - 35.4 x 27.6 x 0.8 inch

€1,959

Painting, Circus I, Zakhar Shevchuk

Zakhar Shevchuk

Painting - 39 x 33 x 2 cm Painting - 15.4 x 13 x 0.8 inch

€990

Painting, Torn Legend, Gripe

Gripe

Painting - 100 x 81 x 2.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.9 x 1 inch

€1,800

Painting, Playing tennis, Pol Ledent

Pol Ledent

Painting - 60 x 50 x 2 cm Painting - 23.6 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch

€600

Photography, Napoléon, Gerry Cranham

Gerry Cranham

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

€990

Photography, Arnold Palmer, Gerry Cranham

Gerry Cranham

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

€1,500

Photography, Turn, Gerry Cranham

Gerry Cranham

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

€1,650

Sculpture, Lanza, Jesus Curia

Jesus Curia

Sculpture - 97 x 72 x 20 cm Sculpture - 38.2 x 28.3 x 7.9 inch

€7,200

Painting, Skater 03, Karine Bartoli

Karine Bartoli

Painting - 80 x 100 x 4 cm Painting - 31.5 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch

€1,400

Painting, Lauda & Hunt, Marta Zawadzka

Marta Zawadzka

Painting - 110 x 140 x 2 cm Painting - 43.3 x 55.1 x 0.8 inch

€3,500