David Barista: Sporting Artwork

My mixed-media paintings, collages, and sculptures grow out of sports: baseball, boxing, MMA, and horse racing. I have played, coached, and watched sports my whole life, so I come to this topic not only as images but as shared rituals full of feeling, memory, humor, and belonging.

I use a contemporary art approach to sporting subjects, and I produce each artwork with a concept in mind. I begin most artworks by journaling my thoughts and stream of consciousness.  Sports jargon often serves as a starting point for contemplation which gets translated into a visual vocabulary. I appropriate images from popular culture by collecting found materials and through carefully curated image searches. I repeat, layer, and juxtapose familiar figures and fragments. Tracing, simplification, exaggeration, and digital cut-and-paste help me find a composition that carries the movement and energy I am after.

This work leaves room for interpretation while holding onto what sports give people: stories to tell, laughter and memories to share, and a place to recognize ourselves in one another.