There are relatively few artists who have devoted their life's work to the subject, yet hundreds of artists have been drawn to the genre to create memorable and important works of art. The subject of sports, while seemingly confining, is extremely wide with over two hundred actively played sports throughout its history. As with a majority of print genres, there is no school or particular style that defines a sporting print. Rather, it is the love of the subject. It is widely believed that the most successful art works of sports were undertaken by artists who thoroughly understood, enjoyed it, and even participated in it. Only occassionally have successful sporting prints been achieved with minimal understanding or interest in the subject. Not to say that all sporting prints must be accurate. There are many wonderful works that depict either wildly inaccurate or absurdly romantic interpretations of sport. These are to be treasured as well. To not include these, would be to tell only part of the story of the genre. If we were to pinpoint the main character in this story, it would certainly be the British sporting print. In fact sporting art is often reckoned a British invention. Its real heyday was brief, from the last quater of the eighteenth century to the mid-nineteenth century, and coincided primarily with the enthusiastic Georgian racing, hunting, and coaching activities. Talented artists recorded the important sporting events of the year; print shops and publishers were not slow to meet the public demand for these images of prize-winning horses, renowned hunts, and classic races. It seems that a sporting curiosity was inherent in every Englishman. The sporting print, in its simplest form, might be considered the equivalent of modern photography and its popularity cannot be over-estimated.

There were few inns and farms in Georgian and early Victorian England that lacked some hunting scene or Derby winner portrait on the dining-room wall. Some particularly ubiquitous works may be catagorized as mediocre representations of contemporary sport. However, they are historic documents and charming works--the popular part of an important art form. Other works reveal such exquisite craft of the part of the engraver or etcher, that they have rightfully found their places in museums. Together, they tell the artful story of one of man's favorite pasttimes.

Bibliography:
1. Walker, Stella. Sporting Art: England 1700-1900. Great Britain, 1972.
2. Wingfield, Mary Ann. A Dictionary of Sporting Artists. England, 1992.