“Squash Soldiers”
“Squash Soldiers” now available as a print
Back in 2019, I blogged about a large scale piece of art that I was commissioned to do. That artwork was “Squash Soldiers” and it now proudly hangs in Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club on Appian Way in Dublin. Creating such a significant piece of art and seeing it hung in this exclusive venue is one of the highlights of my art career. It was an exciting piece to work on from conception to creation.
It’s a serious piece but there are fun elements within that squash players will enjoy such as the fact that I created the heads in the crowd by using a squash racquet as a stencil. Fun for sure!
The painting has been very well received and I always enjoy when someone refers to it when I visit the tennis club. However one of the greatest things happened of late when I was approached by someone who commissioned a print of this art work with a custom frame. This made me immensely happy and I was glad to get straight to work to create this very special piece for a very special person.
Custom Frame, as specified by PIGSY
Due to the proportions of the original artwork the print is long and linear so it very much needed a bespoke frame in a size that enhanced the look of the art. I drew a plan for the print and the frame and it was fabricated by the very talented Jake in Picture Bloc Framing Shop which conveniently just happens to be next door to my studio!
As well as specifying the dimensions of the frame I chose a specific frame color that enhances the bold, bright and vivid colors in the print. The concept behind the lighter color of the background is that it is intended to represent the bright whiteness of the squash court and to draw the viewer in to the action of the squash players and their highly contested game.
The actual print was left in the capable hands of Jim in Inspirational Arts (if you are ever there, tell them PIGSY sent you!) and after proofing was printed on high quality fine art paper. Luckily the printer is right next door to the frame shop so I conveniently walked from one to the other!
PIGSY “Squash Soldiers” a painting about the art of the game of Squash!
As a squash player and an artist, I like to think that this art work is a cross over between the art of squash playing and the game of art. Having watched games by players at the top of their game I can attest to the “art” and skill of these players (if you are reading, you know who you are!) and with the positioning of the original artwork at the back of the main court in Fitzwilliam, there is literally art going on from the front to the back of the room.
It’s painted in a style that is very different to my regular PIGSY style and this is because of the nature of the commission and the fact that it was a “pet project” and also the location of where it was going to hang. It was an honour to be asked to paint a work for public display in Fitzwilliam Tennis Club and it also gave me huge satisfaction to paint about my passion of squash. The preparation work was really interesting and brought back so many great memories of some of the great squash games I have watched along with the incredible squash players I know. Some of these highlights, of my life in squash, are captured in the painting along with certain people who had an impact on me or on the game of squash are represented within. Take a look - you might spot yourself!!!
Contact me by email to know more about this art print, or for further details and frame size if you are interested in one of these very special, very limited, PIGSY art prints.
For further reading, here’s the blog about the creation of this squash art work.
With shipping worldwide, see here for details of how to purchase this special limited edition print or drop me a line on pigsy.art@gmail.com
