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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Painting, Jordan 1, Luc Abalo

Jordan 1

Luc Abalo

Painting - 200 x 130 x 5 cm Painting - 78.7 x 51.2 x 2 inch

€10,000

Print, El Festejo, Aryz

El Festejo

Aryz

Print - 100 x 70 cm Print - 39.4 x 27.6 inch

€1,400

Photography, Hand I, Laurent Gudin

Hand I

Laurent Gudin

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

€1,600

Sculpture, Surfer, Michel Haddi

Surfer

Michel Haddi

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

€14,000

Fine Art Drawings, GOLFER 4, Nerza Villegas

GOLFER 4

Nerza Villegas

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

€2,000

Photography, Plongeurs, Elisa Haberer

Plongeurs

Elisa Haberer

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

€2,000

Print, Voluntas, Sam3

Voluntas

Sam3

Print - 49 x 78 cm Print - 19.3 x 30.7 inch

€220

Photography, Le lutteur, Chiara Dazi

Le lutteur

Chiara Dazi

Photography - 60 x 60 cm Photography - 23.6 x 23.6 inch

€1,000

Photography, Jougs, Laurent Troude

Jougs

Laurent Troude

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

€1,150

Print, Voiliers, Michel Bez

Voiliers

Michel Bez

Print - 54 x 76 cm Print - 21.3 x 29.9 inch

€250

Print, Untitled, Mario Bedini

Untitled

Mario Bedini

Print - 80.5 x 60.5 cm Print - 31.7 x 23.8 inch

€400

Photography, Ali le requin, Shuz

Ali le requin

Shuz

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

€50

Photography, Mystique, Eric Lalmand

Mystique

Eric Lalmand

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

€1,000

Photography, Dive In, Terry Hastings

Dive In

Terry Hastings

Photography - 61 x 91.4 x 0.3 cm Photography - 24 x 36 x 0.1 inch

€457

Painting, Bart so foot, MHY

Bart so foot

MHY

Painting - 50 x 40 x 1 cm Painting - 19.7 x 15.7 x 0.4 inch

€230

Photography, The big jump, SergDady

The big jump

SergDady

Photography - 90 x 60 x 4 cm Photography - 35.4 x 23.6 x 1.6 inch

€670

Print, Tableau 80, Leyoy

Tableau 80

Leyoy

Print - 100 x 100 x 1 cm Print - 39.4 x 39.4 x 0.4 inch

€2,100

Painting, Vor, Axel Gercke

Vor

Axel Gercke

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

€1,200

Sculpture, Sacra bestias, Jen-chih Yu

Sacra bestias

Jen-chih Yu

Sculpture - 27.5 x 27.5 x 4.5 cm Sculpture - 10.8 x 10.8 x 1.8 inch

€1,200

Photography, But !, Bruno Lecoq

But !

Bruno Lecoq

Photography - 29.7 x 21 cm Photography - 11.7 x 8.3 inch

€260

Painting, Jump124, SIlvia Caimi

Jump124

SIlvia Caimi

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

€4,000

Fine Art Drawings, The Dancer, Maurice Van Moppes

The Dancer

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

€1,646

Painting, Skaters24, Karine Bartoli

Skaters24

Karine Bartoli

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

€1,600

Painting, À Bicyclette, David Jamin

À Bicyclette

David Jamin

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

€670