Art Meets Sports

Crack! The ball goes flying and the crowd roars! The baseball stadium is packed. What do you notice? The players? The fans? The weather? What do you hear? As an artist, how would you capture this moment? What would you include—and exclude?

Artists have always found inspiration in sports. But that doesn’t mean they simply depict athletes, spectators, and settings. They present their own interpretation of what they see and experience. From the composition to the scale of their work to the materials they use, artists make decisions that transform sporting events into artistic expressions.

Crack! A bat hits a baseball. The ball flies through the air. The crowd cheers! There’s a lot going on at a sports event. How would you capture the moment?

Artists have always been inspired by sports. They show their own ideas about what they see. Artists make decisions about the composition, scale, and materials.

Since ancient times, artists have celebrated the strong, athletic body. The 2nd-century marble sculpture above is a Roman copy of the Diskobolos, originally created in bronze by the Athenian sculptor Myron. Diskobolos, or “discus thrower,” features an idealized—more perfect than in reality—young athlete.

The sculpture shows the dynamic energy of a body in motion. But although the athlete’s body is tense, depicted right at the moment before the throw, his face is completely serene. The sculpture highlights the ancient Greek ideal of a person who is balanced in body and mind.

Artists have celebrated athletic bodies for ages. The marble sculpture above was made in Rome in the 2nd century. It’s a copy of the Greek sculpture Diskobolos, or “discus thrower.” The sculptor Myron made the original in bronze. Diskobolos shows an athlete whose body is idealized. That means it looks more perfect than in reality.

The sculpture shows an athlete who is about to throw a discus. His muscles are tense, but his face is peaceful. The sculpture highlights the ancient Greek ideal of a man who has a balanced body and mind.

Today our definition of the strong, athletic body has broadened to include athletes with bodies of all kinds—and so have artistic depictions of sports. In 2004, British photographer Bob Martin took the photograph shown above. It shows Spanish swimmer Javier Torres at the Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece.

Waiting above the pool, Martin planned to photograph light moving through the water. But as soon as he saw Torres take off his prosthetic legs, Martin knew he had found his subject. The resulting composition isn’t just artistic, it also dismantles stereotypes about disabilities.

“I like the photo because it expresses very well the path to my freedom in the water,” Torres explains. “I left my legs next to the chair and jumped into the water, which is the place where I can move and feel without limits.”

Today the definition of “athletic” includes bodies of all different types. British photographer Bob Martin took the photograph above in 2004. It shows Spanish swimmer Javier Torres in Athens, Greece. Torres was competing at the Paralympic Games.

Martin planned to photograph light moving through the water. But then he saw Torres take off his prosthetic legs. The resulting photograph challenges stereotypes about athletes with disabilities.

“I like the photo because it expresses my freedom in the water,” says Torres. “I left my legs next to the chair and jumped into the water, which is the place where I can move and feel without limits.”

By choosing not to depict people, an artist can celebrate the objects at the heart of a sport, as well as the individuals behind the scenes who make it all happen. South Korean artist Choi Jeong Hwa (CHWAY jung hua) created his Come Together, above, for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, held in Qatar. Resembling a dandelion, Choi assembled this work of public art with soccer balls, kitchen items, and workers’ safety helmets.

“Come Together is made up of different objects and materials that represent the men who helped build the stadiums for the tournament,” says Choi. “It is a symbol of appreciation for their efforts.”

Artists also celebrate the objects and the people who make sports possible. That’s what South Korean artist Choi Jeong Hwa (CHWAY jung hua) chose to do. He created Come Together, above, for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Choi made this work of public art from soccer balls, kitchen items, and safety helmets. He assembled them to look like a dandelion. The objects “represent the men who helped build the stadiums for the tournament,” he says.

Sports drama can even extend beyond the pool, court, or field to the stands. At a 2006 baseball game, a player lost his grip on his bat, which flew into the stands. The moment was immortalized in a photo, which the American artist Sam McKinniss reinterprets in his 2022 figurative painting, Ameriquest Field in Arlington, TX, Sept. 3, 2006, above.

McKinniss transforms the spectators into the spectacle. “I remember going to ball games with my family as a young child,” he says. “This particular scene [turns those] memories into something more thrilling.”

As you look at the works on this page, think about the athletes, the spectators, the objects, and the people who work hard to bring sporting events to life. Then think about the choices the artists featured here made in their work. What stories do the artworks tell?

Sports drama can take place beyond the pool, court, or field. At a baseball game in 2006, a player lost his grip on his bat. The bat flew into the stands. The moment was captured in a photo shown in the news. The American artist Sam McKinniss puts his own spin on the photo in the 2022 painting above. It’s called Ameriquest Field in Arlington, TX, Sept. 3, 2006.

McKinniss makes fans the focus of his work. “I remember going to ball games with my family as a young child,” he says. “This particular scene [turns] memories into something more thrilling.” What stories do artworks like this tell about sports?